SWAT: Angela seeks a job amidst bills, codes, and data.
Angela, 34, is from Grugliasco, a municipality in the metropolitan city of Turin. For a couple of years, she worked for an American multinational in the automotive sector. Then, she went back to studying. She only has one more exam to go, besides her thesis, to complete her degree in business administration. In the meantime, as soon as she discovered the opportunities provided by Project SWAT, she also enrolled in the Specialisation Course as a Front-end Developer. “I chose this course to improve my knowledge of computers and programmes, as well as to meet new people and make new friends,” she says. “I would recommend it as I find it interesting. I like it even if it takes practice since it's all new to me.”
But what do a job in the automotive industry, a degree course in business administration, and a specialization course for web developers have in common? What links these different experiences? In which direction is Angela heading?
Steve Jobs, In his famous speech to students at Stanford University, argued that our experiences only take shape as a pattern if we look backwards.
“Again, you can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backward. So, you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.”
Will it be the same for Angela, too? While today her course seems rather mysterious, in reality A. has already begun to make some key decisions. She just recently received her first advanced digital skills certification, which she will be able to use at her next job interview. And, in the meantime, she continues her journey through codes and data to learn how to design and create websites. “At the end of the course, I expect to have deepened my knowledge of computers and I think this will certainly be the case. In the workplace, I hope to find a job that satisfies me and reflects my expectations," confesses Angela.
In yesterday's La Repubblica, there was an in-depth analysis by the HR Innovation Practice Observatory of the School of Management at the Polytechnic of Milan. In Italy, 74% of organizations are increasingly having difficulty hiring staff. And the front-end developer profile is among the 60 most requested. A. has undertaken a complicated route, but her choice could truly prove to be a strategic investment. During the course of the year, she will have obtained a degree and a STEM certification. According to the ISTAT Report on Education levels and Employment Returns, A. could find herself in a situation of "maximum advantage," as the employment rate of 30-34 year old university graduates is 80.6%, 23.5 points higher than that of high school graduates. And women with a STEM education are less than 20%.
As we wait for Angela to obtain her open badge, all we have to do is add new dots, but this time they are three dots ... We will soon discover how her story develops and we sure hope it will have a happy ending.
Best of luck!
Project Supporting Women, Arousing Talents (SWAT) was selected by the Fondo per la Repubblica Digitale - Impresa sociale and is organized in partnership by the Fondazione Mondo Digitale, Arci and Fondazione Adecco ETS. Courses on digital skills (basic, advanced, and specialistic) will be made available for 250 unemployed women, aged 18-50, in search of employment and/or a better job.
All acquired skills will be attested by certifications meeting certification and professional skills standards, as per the Atlante del Lavoro classification system developed in collaboration with Roma Tre and IT Logics. For further information, read the interview with Prof. Silvia Ciucciovino, Professor of Labour Law at the University of Roma Tre: Dig4All and Swat: Training with Certified Skills.
