Danni Patterson, 31, former manager

BE INSPIRED Q&A

WHAT WAS YOUR JOB WHEN COVID-19 HIT?

I was a manager at a university, working in international education, which obviously is one of the biggest-hit sectors at the moment. My contract was up for extension and it was about to be renewed and made ongoing then COVID19 hit and there was a recruitment freeze so I had to finish up.

WHY DECIDE TO UPSKILL?

My initial reaction was that I wanted to use the time to build some skills. I had always wanted to become better at data visualisation and I was going to do some free online courses at the same time as applying for jobs. Once I realised how dire the job market was, I thought: ‘This is a great time for some formal study in an area I have always been interested in’.

WHAT ARE YOU STUDYING?

Graduate Certificate of Data Analytics. I’m really enjoying it. It’s quite a challenge to reactivate the maths part of my brain again after so many years but it’s coming back quickly. Having technical skills is a really great way to differentiate yourself. I am confident in my soft skills at work but people with good technical skills as well as soft skills make it far in companies. That’s the kind of person I am aspiring to be.

WHAT’S YOUR GOAL POST-PANDEMIC?

I think my end goal would be to return to the international education sector and become a market insight specialist, but right now, I am open to getting experience in the technical side so will be looking at data analyst positions.

YOUR ADVICE FOR OTHERS?

Now is a perfect time to be upskilling. It gives you something to focus on through tough times. It gives you that extra bit of purpose.