From Surviving Hurricane Maria to Becoming a Software Engineer | by Ana Gonzalez
Many of you don’t know me yet, so allow me to introduce myself: I’m Ana González Hiraldo a software engineer at Cisco. It’s incredible how life can change when you’re intentional about making it change. Back in 2017, I never would have imagined that I would be living the life that I’m living right now.
Picture this, a 20 years old Puerto Rican woman coming into the United States with no money and barely speaking any English. Hurricane Maria changed the lives of many Puerto Ricans as it did mine. After spending 3 weeks at a shelter, I had to make the difficult decision to get out of my comfort zone and leave behind everything I knew. I came here with the desire of making a better life for myself and my family back home. Throughout the years, I had many jobs to make ends meet, but I couldn’t see myself doing any of them for a long time, at least not as a career. Deep down I knew that I deserved better.
That’s why, in 2021 when I moved to Georgia I decided to change my life around and focus on myself. I ended a toxic relationship, enrolled back in college after 5 years, and got all A’s at the end of the semester. I started to take online courses to develop my knowledge in different areas and applied for different positions related to those courses.fter a couple of months and many rejection emails later, it paid off.
It wasn’t all rainbows and sunshine though. It took hard work, dedication, tears, and a lot of faith. I still remember the moment when I saw a Multiverse ad on Instagram. Apparently, there were companies out there willing to hire individuals with little to no prior experience and train them, it’s called an apprenticeship. At first, I was really skeptical, but I decided to give it a try and let me tell you, that decision changed my life. After creating my profile, and going through interview calls and workshops, I was finally approved to apply for software engineering apprenticeships.
I saw that Cisco had an apprenticeship and I instantly knew that the opportunity was for me. I applied to it, but later on, was denied because I didn’t meet the location requirements. I was sad and felt defeated, but as people say God works in mysterious ways. A couple of months later, I received a message on Linkedin from a recruiter at Cisco. And, guess what? He was recruiting for the same apprenticeship. It turns out that there were no location requirements, anyone from anywhere in the US was able to apply for it. So, I interviewed for it and got the job. I genuinely believe that what’s for you, won’t pass you by and that’s exactly what happened to me.
I decided to go for an apprenticeship because it was the best way for me to learn and put into practice what I was learning, and honestly, I couldn’t have made a better decision for myself. After 9 months on the job, I can say that I’ve gotten out of my comfort zone, I have learned and grown so much. I have met and built relationships with awesome people, and I will continue to do so. I work at a company where I feel valued and most importantly, I know that I belong here. This is a company that is allowing me to grow in my professional career, just as much as in my personal life. I’m so grateful to be part of Cisco and I’m excited to see what comes next in my career.
Ana Gonzalez Hiraldo is a Software Engineering apprentice at Multiverse based in Atlanta, GA. She’s writing for the Apprentice Lens as part of the Blogging Team. Here’s more about her: Through her deep passion about communication, and storytelling, she’s looking to share her personal and professional experiences and that way she strives to empower, uplift and motivate people to go after their dreams.