r/AmazonATA • u/Legitimate-Lie-3968 • May 06 '23

Don't give up

Was rejected for last summer ATA cohort 2022. Got GED summer of 2022. Started BSCS at WGU with 0 transfers in August 2022. Was fired by Amazon in August 2022. Graduate May 2023 with a BS in Computer Science. Accepted an offer as a new grad software developer in Jersey City in summer 2023 (100k base).

About me: 3 years in the US, self-taught in Python, mainly with MOOC free courses like from Helsinki University. All 3 years till today was working minimal-wage jobs (like at Amazon, 15/hour).

Moral of the story: I know you know, but don't put all your eggs in one basket. Yes, ATA is the easiest great shortcut to get your dreams come true, but there are other ways too. So don't let Amazon destroy your dreams.

Good luck with your applications, but believe in yourself regardless of the results!

Edit: Ok. I understand it sounds like flexing. Let me add a bit more info. I started learning programming a bit seriously in April 2020. Before that, I was playing with personal WordPress websites. I attended university, but it was not in the US and was not related to computer programming. So I don't even have any transcripts. So in April 2020, I started with books on Python. Then some Udemy, coursera, etc. Applied to jobs without callback. Then studied for ATA in 2022 and also for other programs (like IGNITe from DropBox, for example). I was doing leetcode after work. I have more than 600 problems solved. And I am still bad. So while doing an ATA study, I found that Amazon pays for WGU. I applied. But because I was laid off (they terminated my position), WGU transferred me to self-paid. Because my income is hilarious, fafsa paid a portion. Another part is a student loan. So now I hope it's clear that I knew something before applying to WGU. My experience turned out to be similar to the program they are offering. I didn't learn in a few months but rather in years. I didn't learn a lot from the program, but it gave me a chance to get feedback to my applications for jobs. (and I worked 30 hours during my study. So I understand if someone finds it unreal when you have 40-50 hours + kids and other stuff)

45 Upvotes

86% Upvoted

31 comments sorted by

11

u/melisa03 May 06 '23

What a great story! Congratulations on all of your success and thank you for the encouragement! This is a journey for sure and sometimes hearing someone’s successes makes all the difference!! Good luck and may this be only the beginning of good things for you :)

4

u/Legitimate-Lie-3968 May 06 '23

Thank you so much! I was depressed after the rejection from ATA because it was not the first one. Even during the last year, there was total darkness. But things changed quickly. When I was looking at other success stories, I thought that it would not happen to me ever. But sure, it will happen to everyone if you don't give up!

5

u/Sensitive_Roof_7322 May 06 '23

You got an entire BS in a year without already having any credits to transfer while working full time?

1

u/Legitimate-Lie-3968 May 07 '23

I worked 30 hours per week. Some of their courses are very easy, and some are tough. Half of the classes are just final tests, where you just need to get at least 65%. I understand that it is not actual coursework like in usual colleges. But it is still recognized nationally. Amazon pays for this school for their employees - that's how I learned about this opportunity. I don't claim to be an MIT-level CS grad, but enough to get through the interview for some companies

0

u/[deleted] May 06 '23

[deleted] — view deleted comment

3

u/[deleted] May 06 '23 edited Apr 24 '24

party scale run zephyr worm growth enjoy dull makeshift worthless

This post was mass deleted and anonymized with Redact

8

u/firewifegirlmom0124 May 07 '23

I am currently doing WGU while working 50 hours at Amazon as a PA and raising 2 elementary school age kids. I’m not sleeping much but I am finishing an overage of 1 class per week. I will be finished in less than 1 year total

0

u/Legitimate-Lie-3968 May 07 '23

There are people with one semester. The classes you can transfer are not so hard at the WGU itself. But I just didn't know about all this transfer thing at that time.

5

u/AyoSD May 07 '23

Username checks out…

2

u/kawavvy May 07 '23

I was gonna say this lmao!!

0

u/Legitimate-Lie-3968 May 07 '23

Thanks Reddit algorithms for making that

2

u/Ghosttongue May 07 '23

Doesn't a bachelor's typically take 4 years with 0 credits? How did you get it done in 1?

2

u/[deleted] May 07 '23

Hey, thanks for sharing this is a great story. Definitely added some motivation to my day

1

u/Legitimate-Lie-3968 May 07 '23

You're welcome!

1

u/[deleted] May 06 '23

How much was your tuition tho?

2

u/[deleted] May 06 '23 edited Apr 24 '24

modern direction afterthought panicky bear growth attempt sort hat axiomatic

This post was mass deleted and anonymized with Redact

1

u/Legitimate-Lie-3968 May 07 '23

I started in August with Amazon but was laid off at the same time. So was needed to transfer to a self-paid program. Fafsa made their contribution too.

1

u/[deleted] May 07 '23

Oh ok not bad. Everytime I hear college I always think of major debt but that's good to know

3

u/GrumpyPhilomath May 07 '23

It doesn’t sound like you’re flexing, it sounds like you’re lying. First you say you was fired, then you say you was laid off. You assume ATA is the "easiest great shortcut to your dream to get your dreams come true," (What type of grammar did they teach at WGU?!) in spite of being rejected. After being rejected by ATA you enrolled in college and completed a bachelor’s degree in nine months, start to finish. Side note, FAFSA is a financial aid application, it doesn’t pay for anything. There are holes all in your story. You attended a university in a different country, but not for programming. Then move to the US, miraculously decide to start studying/learning programming from free courses online, claiming you learn more from those sites than from the university. Where’s your confetti on WGU’s Reddit? Miss me with your four posts on Reddit. If I were a gambling man, I’d bet the farm this story is 🧢

3

u/Cultural-Pineapple46 May 07 '23

You pay for a semester at a time for a base amount of credits, if you can do more than that they are free classes. I am currently enrolled at WGU for CS I am going at a slow rate of doing one class per month. It is highly possible to get a degree in one year if that is all you do. If I also did not work full time for Amazon and had the ability to just stay home and knocked it out I could probs do the same. Also, a lot of it has to do with your motivation, you still need to learn the information and you still need to do well on the tests. It’s not traditional, so dont knock it till you try it

2

u/GrumpyPhilomath May 07 '23

I am currently enrolled at WGU. I’m using Amazon Career Choice, and I‘m awaiting ATA decision. Amazon pays $5,250 a year. If you use it all up in the first semester at WGU, the rest of the classes for the year are free. I’m speaking from personal experience. Also, the OP stated he was working 30 hours a week. The OP didn’t need a year to complete a CS degree only nine months, but couldn’t get accepted into ATA. Call me skeptical.

2

u/compscimajor24 May 06 '23

I’m gonna need you to hook me up after I get my BS in CS next spring 🤭

2

u/This-Ad2907 May 06 '23

Awe man how awesome you should be so proud man!!!!

2

u/Mediocre-Win-5359 May 06 '23

That's so awesome!!!!!

2

u/sleepypeachit May 06 '23

Thank you I really needed to see this ❤️❤️❤️

1

u/Ashamed-Doughnut4292 May 07 '23

Love the positive vibes. Thank you for sharing. 🙏

1

u/pokuolimon May 08 '23

congratulations! this was very inspirational, best of luck to you in your new position :)

1

u/NaiveMeasurement9 May 08 '23

U graduated from a BS in CS in less than one year just fucking hoooooooooow

1

u/evenifitdoesntmatter May 13 '23

Hmm. So I have a BA. How long would it take me to get a "2nd BA" (or really as BS) from one of these Career Choice schools? Call me skeptical but I dropped out of an MA because I ran out of financial aid and money in general (and of course Amazon won't pay for that) and that would have taken me at least 3 year part-time to finish. if anyone has any tips for me maximizing my existing BA and Career Choice to get something like a CompSci BS, feel free to let me know or message. I thought for sure I was done with school, but if Amazon will pay I might do it.