Joyce Ilumin graduated with an engineering degree in the Philippines. Shortly after graduation, she married and moved to the Chicagoland area where she welcomed two children. Joyce became a stay-at-home mom until her life circumstances abruptly changed. She decided to pursue education in a new industry to begin a career. As she searched for opportunities to begin her employment journey, Joyce connected with National Able Network.
Upon becoming a National Able Network client, Joyce met with her career coach, Stephanie Levine, to discuss employment goals in new prospective industries. Originally, Joyce was interested in pursuing nursing or Information Technology (IT), but further career exploration and alignment of her interests lead Joyce to land on Medical Coding. While pursuing her educational course in Medical Coding, Joyce worked closely with her career coach to revamp her resume and brush up on her interview skills.
Joyce completed the Medical Coding course in just 6 months! Normally, students require about 1 full year to complete the coursework. Reflecting on this experience, Joyce says, “Her [Stephanie’s] encouraging words were most helpful. For someone like me, I didn’t know what would happen because of the change in our family. Her constant encouragement really helped me a lot to get that confidence again.”
As a newly single mom, Joyce’s self-motivation and career coach collaboration equipped her with career confidence. Joyce jumped into job search while preparing to test for her Medical Coding credentials. She was quickly hired as an Educational Associate. She says, “I’m so thankful I got the opportunity to study again and have a wonderful career coach,” says Joyce, “It’s a big opportunity and it made me hopeful.”
Congratulations Joyce! We’re so excited to see your career growth in the years to come.
