How I started studying IT by mistake

This blog post is written by Annika Latza, student in the Information Technology programme at Arcada.

Some people immediately know what they want to do when they grow up, while some have to try out different things before they finally know what they’re good at. And then there’s people like me, who end up doing something they never ever imagined doing in their life, simply by one (maybe accidental) coincidence.

When plans don’t feel right

Covid time hit all of us like a truck when I just started studying biology at a aniversity in my home country. I have always been interested in natural sciences, however there was no passion, and I just tried to survive one semester after the other. When I came back from an exchange abroad, I was nearly finished and only had to retake and pass one exam that I failed many semesters before, and an elective course.

Since I came back in the middle of the semester, there were not many courses to choose from. Some boring cell biology course and a course in programming for biologists. It was late at night when I gave my selection, and since I had barely passed my programming course in high school, I confidently chose the boring cell biology course.

The course selection mistake

Or so I thought, because when I woke up the next morning, it was crystal clear that I had messed up the selection. Not only has my tired self clicked the wrong button and registered for the wrong course, no, the other course was also already fully booked overnight. I couldn’t do anything else than attend that course.

In a wild turn of events, it turned out that I am actually good at programming and this course has been the most interesting one I had to this point of my studies.

Discovering a hidden talent

After I graduated, I didn’t really know what I wanted to do with my life. Biology has been one of the toughest but also most interesting things I studied, but I just couldn’t see myself as someone working in this field. So, while I was working some random jobs that didn’t interest me a single bit, I kind of developed programming as my hobby, and invested a lot of time in trying to learn some different programming languages and get better at what I already knew.

When summer was over, I knew three things:

1. I did not want to stay in my home country.
2. I did not want to be a biologist.
3. I was kind of good at programming.

Choosing a new direction

So, while everyone around me was already working, buying homes or becoming parents, I decided to pack my things and my dog, and move to a different country. A country I have visited many times before, and the second I stepped on Finnish land, I knew this was the right decision.

Of course, I was scared that I would regret my decision. Leaving everyone behind at the age of 26 and starting completely new while everyone else already figured their life out is really terrifying.

But how do you know that you’re doing the right thing? You’re scared, and you’re doing it anyways. It might not be the thing you always expected. It will definitely go different than planned at some points, and maybe in the end you realise, that it wasn’t how you wanted it to be. But at least you’ve tried, and that is already more than enough.

I for my part, can confidently say that I did the right thing, and it still makes me laugh to think back to that one night. And now I am sitting here, writing this text. The past semester definitely wasn’t always easy, and there were many moments when I questioned whether I had made the right decision.

What almost didn’t happen

Looking back, it’s funny to think that none of this was part of my plan. One wrong click led me to a course I didn’t want to take, a hobby I never expected to develop, and eventually to a new country that I learned to love very quickly.

So, if there is one thing I learned from all of this, it is that not every path has to be planned. Sometimes you discover what you love by one lucky accident.

I certainly did.

Are you curious to know more about the Information Technology programme at Arcada? Visit the programme page and find out if it could be a match for you.