Why Employers Should Consider Apprenticeships to Address the Tech Talent Gap The talent shortage in…

Apprentice Success Stories
Apprenti celebrated our five-year anniversary and placement of over 1,500 apprentices nationwide. To commemorate this milestone, we are highlighting some of our accomplished apprentice alumni. These incredible, inspiring apprentices share details about their careers in technology, how Apprenti helped them on the way, and their plans for the future.
Name:
Shane Gable
Current Occupation:
Software Development Engineer, Amazon Web Services
How did you first decide to pursue an apprenticeship through Apprenti?
I wanted to work for Amazon. So, I had been bugging recruiters on LinkedIn for about a year when I finally got a response. A recruiter invited me to apply for the SDE Military Apprenticeship. It was a no-brainer; there is nothing else like it.
What were you doing before Apprenti?
I bartended at a Mexican Restaurant near JBLM for a while. Then I was driving for Uber in Seattle, taking Amazonians from one building to another mostly.
What effect has Apprenti brought to your career if any? What’s your plan for your career post Apprenti?
Apprenti was a complete game-changer for me. I never would have had the opportunity to become a software engineer otherwise. The amount of impact I have at work has increased by orders of magnitude. My earning potential is now also something I never would have believed possible.
Would you recommend Apprenti? Who would you recommend it to?
I would recommend it to anyone who is willing to work hard. I’m not sure about the other apprenticeships but the SDE Military Apprenticeship with Amazon is hard work. You have to give it your all.
Click through to read more apprentice success stories!
Name:
Bobby Moran
Current Occupation:
Systems Engineer
How did you first decide to pursue an apprenticeship through Apprenti?
I heard about the Systems Analysis position and it sounded like a good bridge for my communications and tech talents. I was recommended to the program by contact at Jewish Vocational Services.
What were you doing before Apprenti?
I was working for MetroParks of Butler county. Before that I was a creative brand consultant for five years.
Are you learning anything new right now?
I am learning Android development.
What effect has Apprenti brought to your career if any? What’s your plan for your career post Apprenti?
It has given me direction from a knowledge-earning perspective. I am in grad school with my employer and learning a technical skill. I’d like to own my own media company that operates to promote peace.
Would you recommend Apprenti? Who would you recommend it to?
Absolutely. Anyone willing to work hard to get into a tech career.
Name:
Levi Sylvester
Current Occupation:
Solutions Architect, Amazon Web Services
How did you first decide to pursue an apprenticeship through Apprenti?
After separating from the Air Force in 2016, I spent the next few years trying to jumpstart my career on the civilian side. I found a path into the tech industry as a system administrator, where I was supporting businesses, K-12 school districts, local government agencies, and small businesses in Southwestern Colorado as a consultant.
What are you doing at your job now?
The amazing part of being a Solutions Architect is the wide variety of work you are able to accomplish. The overarching principle is to serve as a key technical member during cloud migrations and new application deployments to ensure the customer’s success in building on the AWS platform. My favorite part of this is building functioning proof of concepts based on a client’s use case to demonstrate AWS capabilities and whiteboard architectures. A recent example of this includes creating a machine learning sentiment analysis proof of concept to run sentiment analysis on media files.
How has this apprenticeship experience impacted or changed your life?
The one thing that many Veterans and entry-level workers lack when entering the workforce is a chance. This apprenticeship gave me the opportunity and the resources I needed to progress my career with one of the best cloud providers in the world. Not only did the apprenticeship provide the training needed to hit the ground running, but it also aided me in continuing my career with Amazon Web Services following the conclusion of my apprenticeship.
Name:
Michael Williams
Current Occupation:
Senior Information Security Consultant
How did you first decide to pursue an apprenticeship through Apprenti?
One of my good friends completed an Apprenti apprenticeship and had a great experience and suggested I should apply.
What effect has Apprenti brought to your career if any? What’s your plan for your career post Apprenti?
Apprenti allowed me to get the skills and certifications needed to start a career in the IT industry. After I completed my apprenticeship I worked as a Solutions Architect, and then was able to get hired at a security company because of the skills and certifications learned during my apprenticeship.
Would you recommend Apprenti? Who would you recommend it to?
Absolutely! I’d recommend Apprenti to anyone looking to start a career in the tech industry. My apprenticeship was very challenging, but 100% worth it. Be ready to work hard. You’ll be rewarded with a great career in one of the fastest-growing industries in the world.
Name:
Tony Granillo
Current Occupation:
Solutions Architect, Amazon Web Services
What were you doing before Apprenti?
I was trying to find myself. I went to college and tried to get started in IT.
What effect has Apprenti brought to your career if any? What’s your plan for your career post Apprenti?
I was given an amazing opportunity to find a career path that has given me so much more than I could expect.
Would you recommend Apprenti? Who would you recommend it to?
I would recommend the program and I would recommend it to anyone who is willing to work hard to achieve success. The program isn’t a guarantee, it’s a chance to prove yourself and see if you can work hard and put in the time to have a career.
Name:
Ashley Kane
Current Occupation:
Software Developer, VMware
What were you doing before Apprenti?
I served in the US Army where I worked on securing radio keys, security protocols and network troubleshooting. I tried learning Ruby on Rails on my own but felt I needed more structure and mentorship in order to successfully pivot.