The Big Move – From Dublin to San Francisco

After a 24 hour journey from Ireland in Mid-September, I arrived at the San Francisco International Airport. No job, no accommodation, and little to no money! I had decided to cross the Atlantic pond to start my career in the “Tech Hub” of the world. The move was daunting to say the least, but it only took a couple of weeks to get myself sorted and settled here in San Francisco. Once I had my accommodations organized, I began to tackle the hurdle of the job search!

My path to finding SparkPost was largely dependent on the last couple of years throughout college. So I’ll bring you up to speed with how my experiences in Ireland landed me in the Social Media Marketing Intern role here at SparkPost.

Sociology, Startups, Social Media —> SparkPost

I’m a sociology graduate from Trinity College Dublin in Ireland, and I have a keen interest in the tech industry. I moulded my degree in sociology towards my passion and interests for gender in the tech industry. I used my college years to get involved in as many startups and social enterprises as possible. This is really what paved the way for my interest in tech. (Not to mention my family love tech aswell!) With this in mind, I finished up my final year in college, having completed my Undergraduate Dissertation on the gender divide within the tech industry. As for the decision to move to SF, I adore travelling and learning about new cultures. As a graduate, I also couldn’t think of anything more exciting than starting my career in the tech hub of the world!

I always knew that my experiences would lead me towards tech companies, but it was a case of finding an industry that appealed to me. This is where SparkPost comes into play! I was exploring a ton of different roles in various tech companies in the Bay Area. The role at SparkPost for Social Media Marketing Intern was the first that really combined all my interests. On a personal level, I love social media so using it for business is particularly exciting to me. It’s also my first opportunity of having exposure to an established Inbound Marketing Team. Finally, the SaaS space is totally new to me so it was a completely different adventure coming my direction.

From the start of the process with recruitment, to the greeting at reception for the interview, and finally speaking with the marketing team, I fell in love with SparkPost. After interviewing with Tracy and Jen I was sure that the company would be a perfect fit. The cherry on top? The offices were super cool, amazing views and located in the centre of the Financial District here in SF!😍 In my mind, all the boxes were ticked!

“Welcome to SparkPost!”

The offer from SparkPost came about mid-October and I was super excited to get started as soon as possible! Initially I was nervous, but I was welcomed with open arms by the team and got straight into training. Soon into starting the job here at SparkPost, I not only loved the role, and appreciated SparkPost’s “Circle of Awesomeness” but I also learned how SparkPost and I share some similar passions. For example, in November for the month of giving, one of the charities SparkPost supported was Girls Who Code. This organization addresses the many issues with the gender divide in technology, something which I would have studied closely in college. It’s also something which relate to being a female in the tech industry.

In addition to this, the community here is great, with lot of emphasis on wellness of the employees. It was these things that really made me fall in love with the company from the early days.

What do I want to achieve at SparkPost?

The end goal? I want to learn and be able to inspire others through the team here. I’m currently getting exposure to a bunch of really great platforms that we use on a daily basis for the marketing. Plus, I have the best mentors, Jen and Tracy, training and managing me, and allowing me to grow my inbound marketing experience. I want to learn about SparkPost as a company and the email infrastructure industry as a whole. Finally, I’m the only Irish employee here at SparkPost. I want to use this opportunity to fully immerse myself into the American culture!

What next?

“You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards.”- (Steve Jobs, 2005)

This is one of my favorite quotes, and it resonates with how I feel about my adventure this year at SparkPost. Every path I have taken in the last few years has lead me to where I am now, and every choice I make in the next year will lead me to my next adventure. I’m using the next year to discover my exact interests and niches so I look forward to seeing where my experience of the tech industry in the U.S. brings me on the my next journey.

If you have any more queries regarding internships or career opportunities at SparkPost, please be sure to contact us!