From healthcare to IT

– In secondary school I specialized in media and communications, but when the time came to decide what to do next, I chose to study nursing. Part of the reason for that was that a lot of my friends were doing the same. In addition, I thought of nursing as a profession with good job prospects in which you got the opportunity to help people, explains Marita.

After completing her studies, Marita started working as a nurse at one of Oslo’s biggest hospitals. It quickly became clear to her that this was not the right choice for her in the long run.

– Even though working as a nurse is incredibly meaningful because you get to help people in a hands-on way, I quickly discovered that this was not the job I wanted to have for the rest of my life.

Part-time studies

Therefore, Marita started considering what other professions might be better suited for her.

– I had already considered IT when I ended up choosing nursing, and I started wondering if this was a better choice for me after all. Moreover, as a nurse I noticed that a lot of our processes were cumbersome and outdated. This was something I wanted to be in a position to change.

So when Marita came across a master’s programme in health informatics at NTNU, the decision was easy.

– I thought this was perfect for me as the programme would let me combine my long-held interest in IT and technology with the experience I had gained as a nurse.

Marita did most of her studies parttime while still working, which she admits was demanding.

– Completing my degree involved both late nights and a lot of weekends, but it was absolutely worth it!

Enjoying work

Marita can already look back at three years with Tietoevry and is very happy with her decision to change careers.

– I really like what I do, and I am very happy that I took the leap and decided to switch career paths, she says and adds that she often draws on her background as a nurse.

– I have been in several situations where I have explained to colleagues why a solution that might look good on paper is not going to work for the nurses that will end up using it. For me, it is very easy to know what our end users want. After all, I used to be one.

Diversity as her passion

Marita is passionate about the need for the IT and tech sector to become more diverse and will be one of the people from Tietoevry participating at this year's SHE conference.

– At Tietoevry, we develop digital solutions and services for diverse societies. Therefore, it was important that the people working on this reflect the diversity of these societies.

Tietoevry aims to have 50% female employees by 2030. According to Marita, this is important.

– I think this gives direction to a lot of our work on diversity, equity and inclusion, and I am very happy to be working for a company with ambitious goals in this area.

Read more about our plans for this year's SHE conference here