New Plymouth returnee uses time in MIQ to land a job in preferred career

Taylor Nelson used his time in MIQ to upskill. Photo/ Supplied

A New Plymouth man has turned a stay in MIQ into a brighter future with the help of New Plymouth District Council's Puke Ariki.

Taylor Nelson completed a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science in Kansas, the United States, and returned home to New Plymouth last year due to Covid.

During his two weeks in managed isolation, Taylor began job hunting and soon realised he needed to upskill his qualifications if he was going to land a job in his desired IT industry.

While browsing through the district council's Puke Ariki library website looking for an e-book to read, he realised he could access LinkedIn Learning free, giving him access to a large range of free training courses.

For Taylor, it offered specific training in JavaScript and other computer programming courses relevant to his career.

Through this upskilling, Taylor picked up a job at the University of Canterbury as a graduate software developer, and he attributes much of his success to the training he had through LinkedIn Learning.

"The courses were high quality, easily accessible, and recognised by my employer," Taylor says. "It was a great way to develop my knowledge in those areas over a short period of time."

Puke Ariki's library collections, access and digital lead Angela Jowitt says LinkedIn is a valuable tool for anyone looking to upskill and further their career.

"Puke Ariki has a range of other free digital tools for people to use if they have a library card, including 3D design, graphic design, ancestry, and our online film and documentary streaming services Kanopy and Beama."