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Destynee Martinez first learned about the CareerWise Colorado youth apprenticeship program during the end of her junior year of high school. She knew she had an interest in working in technology but was unsure about the different types of jobs the industry encompassed.
Initially, she was a little intimidated by the prospect of a competitive interview process, “but, I saw how big of an opportunity this was,” said Destynee. She overcame her nerves, jumped in, and applied, excited about the prospect of exploring careers in technology.
In the fall of 2019, Destynee was officially hired as a youth apprentice with Angi at the company’s Denver office. Her day-to-day duties as a QA technician included ensuring that software worked efficiently for the customer’s user journey. Destynee monitored various parts of the software platform and identified areas that can be developed and improved for a better user experience.
After just a few months of training in her new role, the COVID-19 pandemic forced a shift from working on-site to working from home. It was a challenge transitioning from training with her supervisor in-person to virtual meetings, but Destynee took the change in stride.
“It’s been fun to watch her grow, she really just continued to thrive through that shift,” said Armen Rashidyan, customer success manager at CareerWise Colorado.
As a graduate of the Denver Online High School, Destynee was familiar with learning outside the traditional, in-person classroom setting. She understood the extra discipline and self-motivation required to succeed and be productive in a virtual environment. The smaller, close-knit team at Angi helped ease the transition to working remotely full-time for Destynee. It’s also one of the main reasons she’s found her registered apprenticeship (RA) experience to be so fulfilling.
“I don’t think I could be much happier than I am in my position now,” says Destynee, “I have the best co-workers.”
Last November, Destynee was hired into a full-time role as an enterprise system administrator, launching a high-growth, well-paying career. Destynee’s mom, Rose, has seen the change in her daughter’s confidence, drive, and career planning throughout her RA journey.
Rose stated, “I feel like she’s gotten so much more focused and in-tune with planning out her whole life. She’s like a steam engine and there’s no stopping her. I can hardly wait to see where she goes; I’m really proud of her.”
New Success Stories are published periodically in the Resource Hub on Apprenticeship.gov.
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