The joy I had when I got the “congratulations” message from Rietta via SMS on the 29th of April and in my email on the 2nd of May knew no bounds. The spark I needed to get back on my feet was ignited and what I went on to do in the next three months of my life and what I am doing currently is indebted to that moment.
PRELIMINARY
As a data enthusiast/tech content writer who had a dream but lacked one of the most important things that will facilitate that dream — mobile data, being one of the 33 selected individuals for the “Empower with Data” award was a once-in-a-lifetime privilege.
I used to get constant internet access (thanks to a free WIFI network we had in the area) before I began my freshman year at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. I resumed school in January 2023 which meant that I had to leave the comfort of my abode to a whole new different environment in Nsukka, Enugu State.
I hoped to make use of the internet services I paid for as part of my school fees when I resumed but it was a sham — I was disappointed and my plans to continue with my Tech journey faced a major blow.
Adding to it, I needed the internet access more since I am a Computer Science student and needed it for practical assignments.
March 2023, I heard about “Empower with Data” on LinkedIn when the funds to sponsor the award was still being garnered. Due to the kind donations made, the fund was raised, and I was part of the 200+ applicants for the grant.
April 29, announcements were made, and my “congratulations” was sitting right there in my inbox.
I was selected!
TRIPLE-MOON
The data award lasted three months and I got my first award for the first month in May.
May 2023, I also began my second semester for the session in the university — I was hoping to cover statistics before that time and planned on doing that first with my data award and coincidentally, I was to offer two Stat courses that semester.
While following through the curriculum laid out for my two Stat courses for the semester, I also went in depth in Statistics in preparation for the Data journey ahead on YouTube. I followed a guideline laid out by a Data Analytic expert on Twitter and implemented it on an 8-hour YouTube course created by FreeCodeCamp.
The 8-hour YouTube course covered:
- What is Statistics?
- Sampling
- Experimental Design
- Randomization
- Frequency, Histogram & Distribution.
- Time Series, bar and pie graphs.
- Frequency table and stem-and-leaf
- Measures of central tendency
- Measures of variations
- Percentile and box-and-whisker plots
- Scatter diagrams and linear correlation
- Normal distribution and empirical rule
- Z-score and probabilities
- Sampling distribution and the central limit theorem.
Milestones
July 2023, I was lucky to be offered mentoring in Research & Data — from that time on, with the help of the data awarded to me by the “Empower with Data” program, I scaled through my first month in July with a recommendation by my supervisor.
After statistics, I signed up for a career track on Data Analytics using Microsoft PowerBI — a learning track that will last for three months and I’m not done with it yet.
I documented my journey, shared it with my audiences across different social media platforms and built my LinkedIn newsletter from a number less than 100 to 600+ subscribers.
Connections
I’ve got the opportunity to connect with people from different countries who are interested in my data journey and the life experiences I shared over that time period.
I enrolled into a Hackathon that got me to collaborate with the CEO of DiceyTech — a Tech company based in the United Kingdom.
My mentorship program gave me the opportunity to work with people from the US, Philippines and Ghana.
Sharing my journey, the struggles and everything via my newsletter connected me with the leader of a startup that looks to help people in Tech that needs a roadmap. A person who happens to be a fellow student in the University of Nigeria, Nsukka.
EL FINALE
The three months for which I was awarded the data subscription was bliss — the immense cost reduction on buying data subscription was evidently noticed throughout the semester as I had the resource needed for projects and practical exam preparations.
I received the award for the third month which was going to be my last and I was close to tearing up. I never wanted it to end but it had to, but I am proud of what I did within those three months.
The milestones I reached, the things I got to tick off my bucket list, the connections I made and the things I am doing from that time forward, I owe it to that announcement that was made on April 29th.
A big thank you to the organizers who invested into three months of our lives. They casted their bread into the waters and they will find it later.