My Bangkit Journey — Personal Experience of Being Cohort and Mentor at Bangkit Academy

Bismillah. Alhamdulillah.

Hello everyone, I’m Noor. Let me summarize my journey from as a cohort and mentor at Bangkit Academy. I’m here to share my journey and inspire. I understand there is always more to learn, and I apologize for any mistakes.

Please remember, that this article is based on my experience in the program and reflects my viewpoint. I want my experiences to help us come together and grow. This article is a continuation of the previous one.

This draft article was buried about 8 months ago, I think I need some time to reflect and refine it first until I decide to publish it, and you can read it.

Before Bangkit (2021)

I have been interested in the IT field since I was a kid. I don’t know why. I just looked for the info and tried to learn it, even though I often broke things for my experiments and learned by trial and error. I also know from many platforms and many site sources. Until I got the information about Bangkit Academy. Bangkit is a Google-led academy designed to produce high-caliber, technical talent for world-class, Indonesian technology companies and startups.

However, I’m trying to join Bangkit but Qodarullah (unfortunately) I didn’t meet the requirements. I’m still in the 3rd semester, while the minimum semester has finished the 5th. So then I went back home, became patient, and studied IT outside college hours.

Being Cloud Computing Cohort (2022)

Long story short, Alhamdulillah, I was officially accepted as a Cloud Computing cohort. The activity is studying Bangkit and university lectures, running with 35 SKS. Qodarullah (unfortunately) we have some difficulty regarding the SKS conversion. But it’s fine for me, who are coming from a non-IT formal educational background.

The activity includes attending synchronous Instructor-Led Trainings (ILTs), Weekly Consultations, English classes, and other activities, doing self-paced asynchronous studies via Dicoding, Coursera, and GCSB (Qwiklabs). In total around 900 hours.

We are used to using Google Workspace (GMeet, GCalendar, Gmail, GDrive, etc) and Discord as a primary working space, and English as a primary communication language. We also taught how to communicate between peers, and between supervisors.

We also completed the Company-Based Capstone Project (final project), by building Harga.in, a pricing optimization engine app, partnership with Traveloka, and getting reviewed from PIC. Get a chance to collaborate with the team members from UI and ITS. Click here to view the presentation deck.

Finally, in the end, I got bonus classes, certified as a Google Cloud Associate Cloud Engineer, joined an exclusive GwG Career Fair, got Bangkit merchandise, joined the alumni network, and graduated from Bangkit Academy 2022. Alhamdulillah && Allahumma baarik. May Allah bless all of us.

Being Cloud Computing Mentor (2023 H1)

I have decided to become a mentor, and I am interested in doing so. The first time I doubted myself, but I just tried to be brave. Before I decided to, I first listed down my motivation for joining as a mentor. I reflect on myself and try to find the “Why” reason. Until that, okay bismillah let’s give it a try.

Then, when the announcement began, I officially got the position of Bangkit Academy’s Cloud Computing Mentor and was assigned a class in CC-03. The mentor tasks include participating as an instructor’s teaching assistant for ILTs, leading weekly consultations, and managing Bangkit students/cohorts. Review daily and weekly logbooks and the final report (for MOECRT students).

We get to do sharing sessions, discuss with each other, and play games through weekly consultations. It was an opportunity to communicate with students across Indonesia from various backgrounds (mostly from IT majors) and make intense support through 1:1 sessions.

By being a mentor, I learn a lot of things. I got used to utilizing tools like ChaGPT, Grammarly, and Google Translate to write emails, make conversations in Discord, help weekly consul, etc. I also became more aware of Indonesian time zones (WIB, WITA, and WIT).

There is also a session curated for mentors, such as the Bangkit Mentor Soft Skills, Mentor Meetup, and Weekly Talk with Mentees. I also got a chance to be a moderator for the Bangkit Guest Speaker Session. Then, we also get free access to the Dicoding courses, Coursera (GwG), Qwiklabs/GCSB, and Bangkit merchandise (again).

Finally, biidznillah, I have finished a thesis correlating with Islam and IT. (The Analysis of … In cyberspace) and graduated from my beloved uni, Institut Agama Islam Negeri (IAIN) Kudus. You can read my undergraduate thesis in our official university repository HERE.

Presentation — Bangkit 2023 H1 Highlight Recap

Thank you very much for all that is involved.

I was very grateful and honored to be part of this journey.

MasyaAllah. Alhamdulillah. Allahumma baarik.

All praises to Allah and may Allah bless us.