Nothing Good Comes Easy: Bernadetta’s Inspiring Story

A Story of Bernadetta Sri Endah, Bangkit 2022 Graduate from Informatics Engineering, Universitas Dian Nuswantoro

According to the Global Gender Gap Report of 2023, only 30% of women worldwide are currently employed in the AI sector. Bernadetta Sri Endah (23) is one of them. Before succeeding as an AI Engineer, this girl from Semarang had to endure many ups and downs, like switching her college major and caring for her eight-year-old little brother.

However, Detta—that’s what she’s called—realized that to achieve her dream, she had to work hard. Therefore, she committed to becoming an AI Engineer by learning in Bangkit. How was Detta’s journey before making her dream come true? Let’s read more!

Aspired to Study Petroleum Engineering, Ended Up As a Tech Student

Born and raised in Semarang, Central Java, Detta is the second of four children of a retired businessman father and a mother who is a housewife. As the older sibling, she had to juggle caring for one of her younger brothers and her studies. However, despite the hardships, Detta did her best to learn everything she could.

Before embarking on her journey in tech, Detta’s initial choice of college major was petroleum studies. She was accepted into a university that is confidential to mention. Unfortunately, a shift in the campus policy forced Detta to pay a high tuition fee. Not wanting to give her family economic burden, she rejected the campus’ offer.

However, life must go on, and Detta didn’t want to disappoint her family by not pursuing higher education. Therefore, she enrolled in Universitas Dian Nuswantoro, the same university her brother attended. Informatics Engineering became her major because her brother said studying tech could lead her to a promising career. Then, Detta’s journey as a tech student began.

Unsatisfactory Academic Performance Encouraged Detta to Study Harder

Studying technology wasn’t her initial plan, so she struggled to keep up with the learning. To overcome this challenge, Detta frequently discussed her challenges with the laboratory assistant.

Detta didn’t want to give up. To improve her skills, she signed up for Dicoding and got a free one-month subscription to access all the classes on the platform. Her journey started with taking a course on programming with Python. It was when Detta realized she was smitten with Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and Data.

As Detta’s interest in AI grew, her academic performance improved, and she received an offer to become a laboratory assistant. In one of the laboratory assistant meetings, she bumped into Bangkit.

Doing Many Activities Simultaneously While Learning in Bangkit

In the laboratory assistant meeting she attended, Detta met one of her seniors who joined Bangkit 2021. He told her about the benefits of joining Bangkit and what she could gain from the program. Knowing Bangkit had Machine Learning as one of the available learning paths, Detta was interested in joining. Finally, supported by her lecturer, she participated in Bangkit.

“When my journey in Bangkit began, I had to deal with time management. It was challenging to attend lectures, work in the lab, care for my little brother, and keep up with Bangkit courses.”

Her hustle prompted Detta to rely on the to-do list to complete her daily tasks. Usually, in the morning, she starts her day by taking notes on what she has to do. Then, she’ll go to campus and spend the day until the afternoon.

In the middle of her campus activities, she occasionally takes asynchronous classes in Bangkit. Going home in the afternoon, she cares for her little brother from afternoon to evening by helping him with his homework. At the end of the day, Detta pursues her Bangkit learning target, making her an ahead-of-schedule student.

Becoming an AI Engineer After Bangkit

During her time in Bangkit, Detta gained many skills. She acquired Machine Learning and soft skills, which have proven valuable in her professional journey. Her professional networking also expanded, shaping her confidence to kickstart her career.

So, when Detta completed her 900 hours of learning in Bangkit, she started her career journey as an AI Engineer. First, she contributed to a startup that founded a lifestyle app for women, then moved to a software house.

“My Bangkit experience played a crucial role in my career journey. I got to solidify my fundamental skills before finally being handed on a real project. So, when my career began in the industry, I wasn’t surprised because many things are already familiar for me,” Detta said, Bangkit’s impact on her professional career.

After obtaining professional experience as an AI Engineer for over six months, Detta was moved to give back to Bangkit by becoming a mentor. Her desire to share his Machine Learning knowledge and practical experience motivated her to join. Finally, Detta was accepted as a Machine Learning Mentor in Bangkit 2024 Batch 1.

“Start your journey by building experience.”

Acquiring abundant experience as an AI Engineer and updating her tech skills during her time as a mentor in Bangkit led Detta to begin her journey at PT Astra International Tbk as an AI & RPA Engineer. She conceded that her capstone project in Bangkit played a significant role.

“My interviewer asked about things I learned and challenges I tackled in Bangkit, and then I mentioned my capstone project, where I utilized a Machine Learning algorithm to detect brain cancer. They were impressed, and I got the position.”

As an AI & RPA Engineer, Detta handles AI and RPA-related projects at work. She said that the courses on TensorFlow Developer and Deep Learning helped her immensely since the knowledge from these two classes can be directly implemented in her project.

Now, as Detta has succeeded in building her career as an AI Engineer, she wants to encourage fellow female tech talent to reach their dreams no matter how difficult it takes to make them come true. They have to conquer their fears by daring to snatch any available opportunities.

“When there’s a will, there’s a way. Start your professional journey by being willing to build your experience first, although you wouldn’t get paid at the starting point. Gaining experience matters before you are considered an experienced talent.”

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