The Youngest Web Designer at ZODML

Whiz kid web designer Uche Vivienne Uzor spent the summer interning at ZODML, helping us improve the user experience and design of zodml.org. One of our aims is to encourage self-learning, which is why we make free resources available to our community. Uche’s talents demonstrate how access to learning resources can shape a career and broaden horizons. Keep reading to learn more about this gifted student. ZODML: Tell us a bit about yourself. Uche: My name is Uche Vivienne Uzor. I’m from Imo State and I’m seventeen years old.
Your being a web designer at such a young age makes us wonder: when you were younger, did you do regular things like kids your age, or were you locked up in the house with a computer? (Laughs) I was enthusiastic about computers and devices while growing up. I recall spending ten or more hours on the computer, gaining knowledge and researching graphics and photo editing. Yes, I did regular things children did, but that was in school. As soon as I got home after school I – like you said – locked myself up with the computer. Funnily enough, I didn’t have many friends coming to visit me at home. At what age did you delve into web designing? Did you attend an IT programme? I started using the computer at the age of 6 (when I was in Primary 2), I was able to surf the internet at 9, and at 13, I delved into web designing. My knowledge of web designing is based solely on self-learning resources, specifically YouTube videos. I also joined a community of young graphic designers called Bebo through which I learnt to design Preppy Signs. How many websites have you designed? A lot! Before I started designing websites I met a lot of friends online. One of them whom I will never forget is Nicole. She told me before I could start designing a website I needed to learn HTML, CSS, and PHP. I quickly went to YouTube to find tutorials to learn from. My first attempt on websites was when I started edited other peoples’ codes to suit my taste. How much knowledge do you have of web hosting? Quite a lot – my friend Osa and I started a business where we hosted people’s websites, provided sub-domains and pre-made web templates, as well as Photoshop brushes, pattern, textures, “about me” headers, revamp headers, Twitter backgrounds, and our own YouTube tutorials. Did web designing affect your studies at any point? Yes, a lot of times. When I was in SS1, web designing was a big distraction. My grades were the lowest in my science class – it was so bad that my parents were called in by the school authorities. During this period, I suffered from depression and an inferiority complex, but this didn’t stop me because when I got home I would find peace at my computer. Eventually I was able to catch up with my academics thanks to my mum who is a psychologist. Having acquired such in-depth knowledge and experience, do you think you still need to get further training? What do you intend to study at university? Yes, I’d like to attend university so that I can share with like minds and gain more knowledge. I would prefer to go to a school that offers web designing courses such as NIIT. Initially I wanted to be a neurosurgeon, but my teacher advised me to go for what I had passion for, so I decided that I would rather study Computer Science. Do you intend to become a professional web designer or do you have other plans? Yes, I intend to be both a web designer and a software developer because I am very innovative and creative. You sound very confident! I wasn’t before, but after listening to my pastor I became a new, more positive person. Who are your role models? Anybody in the field of information technology is a role model to me. I have been inspired by a variety of people such as Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates, Jack Dorsey (the founder of Twitter) and the owners of Adobe Inc. How do you intend to carve a niche for yourself in this competitive, male-dominated field? Being female doesn’t change the fact that I can dream big. I’m presently working on some web designing projects and I intend to set up websites for web hosting and designing, domain auctions, and advertisements so watch out for me! What advice would you give to other young people?Do what you like doing best, then think of what you can offer to the world. Plan your life, write your goals, and make sure that action follows; set your targets and pray to God to help you. Finally, dream big.
Interested in interning at ZODML? Visit the Internship page to learn more.