Winning applicant announced for Cathcart Associates’ first CodeClan scholarship 

Independent IT recruitment firm Cathcart Associates has announced the winning applicant of their £5,000 CodeClan scholarship as Tahnee Downie.

The scholarship was open to applicants from low-income households or disadvantaged backgrounds who wanted to retrain for a career in digital technologies at the digital skills academy but were unable to pay for the course fees.

Successful applicant Tahnee applied for the scholarship after being encouraged by other females working in tech.  Tahnee had been considering a course at CodeClan for a while as she wanted to change careers from a graphic designer to a software developer, but was unable to pay for the course.

Instead, Tahnee started to attend Codebar, an organisation that runs coding workshops for those underrepresented in tech. This gave her the insight she wanted to see if coding was for her. She also joined Women Who Code, a non-profit organisation supporting women in tech. This active participation and passion to find out more about coding impressed Cathcart Associates’ Director, Gordon Kaye.

On being told the news of her successful application, Tahnee said: “I was so astonished when I had the phone call to tell me I had been awarded the scholarship!  I was encouraged and empowered by Codebar and Women Who Code to pursue a career in technology. I couldn’t have done it without their support and I’m so lucky to have this amazing opportunity from Cathcart Associates.”

By offering the scholarship, Cathcart Associates wanted to encourage those who are passionate about coding and eager to retrain for a career in digital technology the chance to study at CodeClan.

Gordon Kaye, Director of Cathcart Associates, said: “We all know there is a skills gap in Scotland so we wanted to help an intelligent, motivated individual retrain into a career in tech through this scholarship. The tech industry is booming in Scotland and we believe there should be more opportunities made available for those who have the skills but lack the financial means or come from a disadvantaged background to change careers.”

We had lots of worthy applicants for our CodeClan scholarship and it was a tough decision to narrow it down. But overall, Tahnee’s application was successful because of the dedication she had shown to changing her career and her passion for coding. We wish her every success with her course at CodeClan.”

Melinda Mathews Clarkson, CEO of CodeClan, said: “Congratulations to Tahnee on her scholarship. It isn’t always easy to take the leap and change careers, but at CodeClan we are here to support our students to make that change and begin a successful career in the tech industry.”