Having only taken one entire class in the Computer Science Major Map, I was very intimidated going into the Grace Hopper Celebration. I knew there would be countless high achieving women there who had known they were going to be in the tech industry since middle school, whereas I had recently found my love for coding and web development. Though I was extremely excited to be able to go to this conference the insecurities were quickly overtaking my mind. Even though this was the case, I still knew that I was going to face my fear and go into this conference wanting to get as much as I possibly could.

            Overall, I would say that I really did learn a lot throughout this conference. One of the most valuable lessons that I learned was definitely making connections with others. I feel like I was able to make some amazing relationships with several people which was a great learning experience being that it’s not everyday that you are able to talk to the largest companies in the tech industry. I absolutely loved talking to one recruiter from Snapchat who I even was able to connect with on LinkedIn which gave me the confidence boost that I needed after being so intimidated by everything.

            Along with networking, I felt that I came out of the conference extremely empowered as a woman in technology. Despite the fact that I wasn’t necessarily to most advanced or experienced in the tech field, I was still overwhelmingly accepted by every person that I encountered. Anywhere from the workshops to the panels to the networking opportunities, I felt like I had found a place where I had a support system cheering me on to succeed. This experience truly changed my perspective and I am extremely grateful.