MEET AARON
Before he embarked on his journey to becoming a user experience designer in the Front-end Web Designer/Developer track of Web Development Cohort 43, Aaron Gertler was previously working as a multimedia designer and photographer in various industries. “I have always had a strong interest in technology and user interaction, and development spoke to me as a career where I could combine my love of design with even more logical problem-solving and practical solutions to provide high-quality experiences to users,” he recalls.
The more Aaron immersed himself in the world of UI/UX design, the more he grew to love the idea of embarking on this path to a new, more rewarding career. That’s when he discovered Nashville Software School (NSS). After spending some time researching software development bootcamps, Aaron shares that he chose to attend NSS because of the interview process that assesses applicants’ readiness for the program. “The fact [NSS] interviews people to see if they're ready, that honestly sold me,” he laughs.
THE NSS EXPERIENCE
During his time at NSS, Aaron shares that his favorite part about the experience was the friendships he made along the way. “Just some of the best people to learn from out there,” he smiles. Of course, he encountered some roadblocks during his bootcamp as well, but, as Aaron puts it, “That's just how development works.” He encourages current students to “lean on your teammates” during the bootcamp, as that’s what helped him through his own experience.
Everyone learns differently and at different speeds. Someone can help you, and [you can help someone else]. A rising tide floats all boats.
CAPSTONE PROJECTS
For his first capstone project, Aaron created Sea Track, an application that allows aquarium hobbyists keep track of the health and quality of the water in their tanks. “A lot of aquarium usage is kind of like home-brewing beer, there’s a lot of maintaining chemical levels and keeping tabs on all that stuff,” he explains. With Sea-track, users can log their chemical levels, the fish they have in each aquarium, and what each fish’s “safe-ranges” are for said chemicals. Aaron built Sea Track using React, JSON Server, and Heroku.
Aaron applied what he learned from his first capstone project to his second capstone, StockPile. “I wanted to take a couple ideas of real-world problems that allowed me to also focus on CRUD and UI/UX and [help] solve an issue that would actually matter to me,” he smiles. StockPile allows photographers to create lists of all of the equipment they use for photoshoots and keep track of where equipment is when they rent it out. Aaron boasts that “whether it’s five things in a home-studio or 1,000 things in a professional studio, being able to sort through all of that by names, types, descriptions, and mark when gear as been checked-out,” makes it easier for freelance photographers or a small photography team to keep track of their gear and equipment. To build StockPile Aaron used React, JSON Server, Ant Design, and Figma.
HIRED!
After graduating from Web Development Cohort 43, Aaron has accepted a job as a User Experience Designer for HAH Parking, Inc.
Aaron believes having “a great experience with [NSS UI/UX instructor] Brenda Long and [NSS Teaching Assistant] Sage Klein on the UI/UX track, coupled with a previous career as a designer” helped him land his first UI/UX job.
The more I immerse myself in UI/UX design and front-end development and the new technologies I'm exposed to, the more I grow to love this career path.
Learn more about Aaron's NSS Experience by listening to his podcast!
Check out all the recent grads at Full-time Web Development 43's class website and hear the graduates share their experience at NSS and capstone projects in their podcasts below.
