So after some weeks of processing, I got into Microverse! Okay, hold on... Let's talk about Microverse briefly.
MICROVERSE: A QUICK OVERVIEW
Microverse is an online school that trains you to be a world-class software developer without taking any fee until you secure a high paying job (1000 dollars and above). The beauty of Microverse is this: the school uses pair-programming and timeframes to make students focused and accountable while learning so that students don't go through learning alone and unchecked. You have a stand-up team that you report your progress and bottlenecks to, as well as mentors that help you navigate some technical challenges. To put it properly, with Microverse, you're never alone. You can read more about Microverse here.
A LITTLE ABOUT ME
I'm Nigerian and a decent coder. I say this because I have worked on real web projects that people use and also interned at a local startup in Nigeria. But I have always wanted to be more than that. I have always wanted to compete in the global tech market, hence my application to Microverse.
THE APPLICATION PROCESS
First, I signed up for the program on the Microverse website.
- THE CODING CHALLENGE - This was the first phase of my application. The challenge was to solve three algorithmic problems on Hacker Rank within two to three hours. Microverse uses this to test your coding/problem-solving capabilities, which is an essential quality you'll need throughout the program. If, however, you have no coding background, Microverse has a pre-course material based on the Odin project to get you confident with HTML, CSS and Javascript. I skipped this because I feel confident enough to dive into the coding challenges. Next step, Check-In!
CHECK-IN (Video and Device Test) - After passing the coding challenge, Microverse requested a 2 minutes Get-To-Know-You video where I had to tell them about myself and why I want to join the program. This was to test my fluency in the English language as communicating properly with other students is a key factor for any student's success. The Check-In video also helps them access the quality of your devices like the webcam and microphone quality. Lastly, you will be running some internet tests to verify that your internet connection meets the Microverse requirements. You can as well test your internet speed against those requirements here. Once those were out of the way, I advanced to a very critical stage of the application process, the Pair-Programming trials.
PAIR-PROGRAMMING TRIALS - After my Check-In video, I received an email from the Microverse admissions team saying I have qualified for the pair-programming trials. This is a very essential part of the application process and even the whole Microverse fulltime program. I was paired with three other applicants (a Kenyan, an Ethiopian, a Rwandan) and I had to spend 4 hours with each of them solving algorithmic problems on Hacker rank. We also worked on basic web development projects as a team and commit our final tasks to Github. At the end of the trials, If I add the 3 hours spent on the initial coding challenge to the 12 hours of pair programming trials, that makes 15 hours of the coding test. I feel psyched! After this, we each had to fill a form assessing the qualities of the other applicants including coding, spoken English, internet connection, attitude towards problem-solving, patience. I submitted and qualified for the next round, the video interview.
VIDEO INTERVIEW - The remote video interview was pretty straight-forward. A set of video questions that required me to answer on the spot. Microverse already sent an email detailing the kind of questions they will ask me, one of which was why they should invest in me. I just tried to be honest and answer to the best of my abilities. After this interview, I was offered an admission into the fulltime program! Yay!!
ACCEPTANCE CALL AND ISA AGREEMENT - The acceptance call is a video conference between the Microverse founder, Ariel Camus and accepted students. We were duly congratulated and got a lot of our individual questions answered. Afterwards, we were sent an email containing the Income Sharing Agreement we had to sign to commit to the program fully. That's it!
ROUNDING UP
If you are unsure whether to apply to Microverse for one reason or the other, I am going to encourage you to try. If I can get in, then you can too. Even if you don't make it at the first trial, you can always try again. Microverse has a fantastic team and structure that is always ready to help you.
Thank you for reading!