It’s a Match! Ksenia and Capgemini Internship

Life is like a balancing act, with doors always opening and closing. But what Ksenia Besednykh has learned is that when one door closes, another always opens up, and to open that door, you need to knock.

Being forced to migrate to another country and learn a new language and culture wasn’t what Ksenia had anticipated for her or her family’s life. In Ukraine, she had a stable job she loved, working as a trade marketing manager at Coca-Cola with over 10 years of experience. Leaving her home became a door being slammed shut. 

When the door of possibility opened for her and her family to come to Berlin, they took it. Though they could go to Berlin, they were left with the uncertainty of not knowing how long they would be allowed to stay. In the beginning, they were told they had two weeks. Two weeks turned into two more weeks, one month became a few months, and months became years. Wanting to make use of all the time she was given, Ksenia wanted to do something worthwhile and discovered ReDI School.  

In Ukraine, she first learned about front-end development and found it interesting. ReDI School became a place for her to learn more about this field as well as take various other tech courses and grow her skills.

“I started learning programming languages like HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, as well as some Social Media Marketing and Artificial Intelligence Fundamentals from Microsoft.”  

She especially loved the CSS course they offered, “It was offline in the main office, and the teachers were amazing. I got to connect with people, we got to help each other, I studied so much.”

At ReDI, she was able to understand that the tech world has so much to offer and that there is a place for everyone, for introverts and extroverts like herself. She decided that she wanted to work on obtaining a position that would allow her to work as a project manager in an IT company.

Another opportunity offered to Ksenia was ReDI's Mentorship Program, which is part of the "She's ReDI" initiative and is supported by the Federal Family Ministry:

“I am deeply grateful to my mentor for his help and support. In 2022, he assisted me with writing my CV and supported me during my adaptation process. In 2023, when I inquired about the possibility of an internship at Capgemini, my mentor facilitated this, for which I am immensely thankful. Although an internship in IT presents many challenges, I am confident that the skills acquired there, combined with the knowledge gained from ReDI courses, will make me a competitive employee.”

Obtaining her internship at Capgemini was the culmination of all her hard work and sacrifice. Reaching a B2 level in German, working towards achieving a C1 level, taking ReDI courses, and caring for her family—it all became worth it for her. 

“I learned that I can learn everything. I didn’t know that I love to learn new things. I was able to understand this with the help of ReDI School and the people around me.”

Ksenia is outgoing and friendly, and as a dedicated mother, wife, learner, and intern, she wanted to give a good example to her two young daughters. She wants to show her children that it isn’t too late to start over. She commented that everything she does is for her kids, “I’m trying for them, working to give them a beautiful life and future.”

During her time, Ksenia learned it’s important to ask for help, reach out, and knock on the doors available to her. She understood that it is important to surround yourself with people who have similar thoughts and priorities as you. However, the most significant advice she could give to someone is this: “The first thing to those who move to Germany and plan to stay here and work here is to learn German. You need German here.”

“I just want to say to people like me, immigrants, don’t be shy to do something new. Don’t be shy to ask for help. When you don’t reach out and ask for help, you’re holding yourself back. So just do it. You need to do something for yourself. You need to start your life; don’t wait.”

Starting over is never easy, and it can be hard to move forward when all the doors seem to be closing. However, as Ksenia mentioned, doors open when you knock. So, keep knocking. Take advantage of the opportunities, learn new things, and never give up.