Felix

Software Engineer.

Felix came to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) while taking his computer science degree. After such a positive experience, he changed his degree and now, as well as being in university, he works part-time at the ONS.

I came to the ONS for a year in industry as part of my computer science degree at Portsmouth University. It was so good I ended up changing my degree to software engineering. Now, three years on, I work at the ONS part-time as a software engineer alongside my university studies.

I’ve found the flexible working hours to be powerful, letting me balance my work around my university assignments, lectures and social life.

I was surprised that, even though I started on a fixed-term contract, I was able to add real value to the team almost immediately. I was involved in the development of a system that tracked the completion of Census 2021, which was an historic achievement.

One thing that stood out to me was how the ONS is committed to upskilling its employees. It doesn’t matter how long you work there, you can access support and training right away.

I’ve always been passionate about technology and how it can be used to solve problems. For example, when I was in sixth form, I developed a programme that digitised the registration system because I found its previous process frustrating. I love fully understanding a problem and finding a solution for it, especially when no one has asked the question before.

I love the flexibility that the organisation’s hybrid working allows and the support available to grow my skills. It’s been great to contribute to important projects and to develop as a software engineer.