Ashlee

Six years ago, I was accepted into Year Up. Shortly after, I earned an internship at Mozilla Corporation where I received a full time position in the IT department. Fast forward about five years later, I lost my job at Mozilla in March 2018. At the time, it felt like one of the hardest experiences I had to endure. I quickly reached out to Sahaar at YUPRO Placement for help. Before I knew it, I started practice interviews with Mags, had several interviews lined up for me by Amber, and was given a job coach, Wendy, to start up professional momentum again and to keep me on my toes.

It was the weekly coaching sessions with Wendy that kept my drive, focus, and positivity going. She reminded me that my skills and experience would be an asset at another great company and I could land another great position if I was willing to put in the work. Late July 2018, I landed a full time position at Pandora Media Inc. As a loyal music listener, this was an opportunity of a lifetime. It’s still surreal today. There are a few things I’d like to highlight that stood out along this journey. The quality of work you put in determines the quality of the outcome you’ll get in return. Hard work really pays off. Don’t give up. YURPRO and Year Up staff, thank you again and again for keeping the movement going. Special thanks to Sahaar, Wendy, Amber, and Mags for your compassion toward students and alumni, for the examples you all lead every day, your loyalty, your listening ear, and for all the time you continue to give to both the alumni and students.