Wrapping Up Upward: Affirm’s Apprenticeship Program

Affirm’s Upward Program

At Affirm, we believe great talent can come from anywhere. In 2020, we transitioned to a remote-first company , which means our programs support a distributed workforce. We recognize that healthy and supported employees are instrumental in building high-performing and inclusive teams and we've made that a priority in everything we do. Every person has equal value, which is why we work so hard to expand fair and transparent access to credit and to maintain an inclusive workplace. These factors have been driving forces in the development of the Upward Program.

In 2021, we launched the Upward Program, Affirm’s first Software Engineering Apprenticeship Program.? With this inaugural program, we hired seven Software Engineering Apprentices from various bootcamps and organizations to join various teams within our Engineering department.? Over the course of six months, our Apprentices did incredible work that made an impact on our business and our consumers.? Some examples include making our merchant portal even more mobile-friendly, enabling bonuses for our cash-back eligible merchants, and various projects with our launch in Australia .

Where We Are Now

We extended offers to six out of seven of our Apprentices to return as full-time Software Engineers.? We are excited that all six accepted their offers and have returned to Affirm! ? We are also thrilled that five of the six Software Engineers that will be joining us full-time identify as women, further contributing to our goal of increasing the representation of women in our Engineering organization.??

Hear directly from our Apprentices turned full-time Software Engineers below regarding their path to where they are now, and their time at Affirm!

In Their Own Words

Tell us about yourself and your journey to Software Engineering.

Leslie Rodriguez: Four years ago, I decided I wanted to do more with my life and went back to school.? I chose a local community college's IT program since I have always loved working with computers.? During this program, I got introduced to HTML and CSS for the first time.? Even though we only spent a short time on it, I was hooked!? I started coding all the time as a hobby while I was studying.? When the college unexpectedly shut down, I was left looking for other options.? When I saw an online ad for Lambda School for Web Development (now the Bloom Institute of Technology), it felt like it was destiny!? I completed the free pre-course and applied.? I had never felt so sure of what I wanted to do with the rest of my life.? I was thrilled when I was accepted, and I have loved it every step of the way.? After graduating, I worked with Slack's Next Chapter program , whose mission is to break down barriers for formerly incarcerated individuals and change how the world thinks about fair chance hiring.? Through this program, I had the opportunity to interview with Affirm and received an offer!

Geraldo Gomes: My name is Geraldo, I’m 34, and I am originally from Brazil but I live in Las Vegas, Nevada.? Prior to the apprenticeship [at Affirm], I worked in the oilfield in different positions, most of them related to exploratory drilling.? I used to have difficult hours, sometimes working 45 days in a row from 5pm to 6am.? And after a decade working like that, it started taking a toll on me.? The day I heard about Software Engineering bootcamps I applied for them, and after 9 months of finding time to study between long stretches of work, I was able to get a position in the Upward Program at Affirm.

Nicole Uyigue-Sivek: My journey to and through the Upward Apprenticeship Program at Affirm has been humbling, trying at times, and life-changing.? After trying to figure out my next steps in life I moved to Prague as a half Czech citizen. ? While I was there, I co-founded a creative agency focused on events, art direction, branding, and public relations for designers and other creative businesses.? I then moved back to Chicago and started a 6-month showroom pop-up featuring Czech design, different events, and fashion shows.? From there I was doing all of the management, branding, social media, and photography.? I ended up staying in Chicago and pursuing my career in photography for about 5 years.? And then the infamous global pandemic hit.? During that time I had plenty of work shooting interiors for Airbnb, food photography for various Chicago restaurants, and weddings for my own business, which all either slowed down significantly or stopped altogether.? I was also the new mother of a 3-month-old and was just ending my self-funded maternity leave.? With the pandemic and being a new mother, I decided that I would try to fulfill my long-time dream of breaking into the tech world by way of software engineering bootcamp.?

Why did you choose Affirm for an Apprenticeship?

Leslie Rodriguez: What piqued my interest from the start, was that it was clear when I researched Affirm that diversity and inclusion were important to the company.? That and the fact that Affirm has such a commitment to inclusion and openness to hiring people from unconventional backgrounds.? These facts led me to believe that I would be valued here, and I was right!

Geraldo Gomes: Affirm’s products allow people to get what they want without losing control of their own finances.? Coming from a country where this type of service is uncommon, I see how important this is, so it was a no-brainer to decide if I wanted to be part of something that important.

Nicole Uyigue-Sivek: I actually went into the bootcamp with one company in mind, and that was Affirm.? I envisioned it and thought about it throughout the entire process.? I created a portfolio website, resume, and cover letter weeks before finishing my bootcamp.? I had one goal in mind, and it was to be an Affirmer.? Affirm was the tech company that inspired me to switch to tech.? How Affirm values all types of experiences, coupled with the employee-first motto and giving lower-income communities an equitable chance through BNPL, was what sold me. I wanted to be proud of the company I gave my energy to.? I wanted to feel like I could enjoy motherhood and be a working individual at the same time.? After really struggling my way through juggling not having child care and keeping up with school work, I was finally able to complete the bootcamp, and I had the privilege of joining the Upward Apprenticeship Program at Affirm.? I can safely say that I'm in the right place, with the right people.

What skills did you learn during your Apprenticeship?

Leslie Rodriguez: I learned how to gather context, how to write a tech spec, how to make decisions based on tradeoffs, how to prioritize tasks, how things work in a large codebase, and how to estimate deadlines while foreseeing possible challenges that can affect those deadlines.? I am working on a project right now that is teaching me project management skills.? I am working on a team that helps improve our app's performance, which is an incredible skill to have that I certainly did not have six months ago.?

Geraldo Gomes: Affirm has a very fast-paced environment, so it was very important that I learned how to communicate with other teams in technical and non-technical ways.? Also, since the apprenticeship was my first job in the tech industry, I had the opportunity to learn lots of tools that really help me in my daily tasks.

Nicole Uyigue-Sivek: During this program, I was tasked with a project to make all of Affirm Merchant pages mobile responsive.? In doing this I was able to work closely with Affirm’s Design team which made me feel right at home with my creative background.? It was great to be able to put my life skills into practice; it made the transition feel a lot more comfortable.

Can you describe the support you had?

Leslie Rodriguez: The support was incredible!? I had a dedicated mentor who I met with daily while I was onboarding, and weekly after that.? Everyone on my team made time to meet with me one-on-one the first week and they each offered to help with anything I needed.? I had several people answering my many, many questions.? My manager and I met weekly and went over my progress and growth areas.? The biggest support was getting constant feedback in the form of appreciation, coaching, and evaluation.

Geraldo Gomes: From day one, I knew I was not alone in my journey and that I shouldn’t be afraid of showing weakness or difficulties.? Anyone I reached out to? for help, was always available to assist me.? That, I think, is the biggest reason why I improved my skills so much during the six-month apprenticeship.?

Nicole Uyigue-Sivek: The support I had started from the moment my recruiter reached back out.? She made it clear to me that she was there to set me up for success at Affirm.? When I was offered the position as an Apprentice Software Engineer, I was truly very nervous.? But I was eased and guided into being an Affirm employee not only by the head of the Upward Apprenticeship Program, but also by a myriad of employees during the onboarding process, as well as my manager, and mentor.? Every one of those people was there to see me thrive and become successful.? I really felt the Affirm love.? After six months in the Upward Program, I’ve been accepted as a full-time software engineer, and I'm just feeling very grateful and accomplished, and completely transformed.? My wife is also in the process of making her way through a UX/UI bootcamp, after her brick and mortar mid-century furniture store closed, and I can’t wait to see where her journey takes her.? We are now a creative-tech family, and we will never look back.

What advice do you have for people interested in transitioning into Software Engineering?

Leslie Rodriguez: First, you can never have enough questions!? Second, don't overdo it.? Anytime you need help, it's best to ask for it, no matter how badly you want to be able to figure it out yourself.? Third, gather as much context as you can on your projects but also others.? It's crucial to finish your projects but be aware of other projects at the same time. Don't just do tasks, but know why those tasks are necessary and where they are on the project roadmap.? When you know your team's goals, it's easier to contribute.? When you know the company goals, it's easier to prioritize.? Those are the three best bits of advice I have: ask questions, don't overdo it on your own, and get context.?

Geraldo Gomes: I think that, in a way, software engineering scares people.? Mostly because when you look at those screens full of code and you don’t have any idea of what is going on, the first thing that comes to mind is ‘Oh, that’s too complicated for me’.? But, if you give yourself some time, all those hieroglyphs turn into a very easy-to-understand language.? Also, since the software engineering industry is always changing, the people working in it are always evolving as well - not only acquiring more knowledge but also evolving as a person.? My advice would be to take a leap of faith towards software engineering, even when you don’t feel comfortable with leaving things behind.

Nicole Uyigue-Sivek: My advice to people wanting to transition into Software Engineering is that it's a field of work in which you are constantly learning.? Nothing gets old or monotonous.? There is always a challenge and a mental reward around every corner.? If this sounds exciting to you, then you're on the right path.

What to Look Out for Next

Based on the success of the program, we are excited to announce that we will be launching another cohort of the Upward Program this year.??

With this second cohort, we are thrilled to be able to continue bringing in amazing Software Engineering talent into Affirm and to see the continued impact they’ll make, via a partnership with specific organizations that we have already selected.