When she was 18 years old, Chetana Adhikari defied societal expectations in her homeland by accomplishing her childhood dream to secure a scholarship to attend college in the United States. The Nepalese native went on to earn a degree in biochemistry before learning of the Military Accessions Vital to National Interest (MAVNI) program, which recruits immigrants with needed language skills to join the military. The opportunity spoke to her. She wanted to prove to herself that she was strong enough to do anything.

Four years in as a U.S. Army medic, Chetana made another bold decision: She would leave the Army to continue her education.

Then, she saw a flyer for Microsoft Software & Systems Academy (MSSA), which changed her fundamental thinking about the future. “I realized coding is like learning math,” Chetana says. “This is a digital era. Everyone should have some knowledge of how to code.”

She joined MSSA and trained in cloud application development at Fort Benning, GA. It changed her life.

After 18 weeks of intensive training, Chetana secured a job offer from Microsoft and readied for her new career. “My transition process was a thousand times better than what I expected it to be. It was clear I’d gotten the right training, the right support,” she says.

Last month, Chetana celebrated her anniversary at Microsoft, and she couldn’t be happier.

“In the Army, when I woke up in the morning in that uniform, I had that sense of pride,” she recalls. “That part hasn’t changed, and I’m grateful about that. I know that I’m going to work in a very inclusive environment. I love my team, everyone has each other’s back, and I’m doing the kind of work that is impacting a lot of people’s lives.”

Check out the stories from these MSSA graduates to learn more about the program and how it can set you up for the next rewarding phase of your life:

Jovan Fitzgerald, Marine Corps veteran

Alexandria Lara, Air Force veteran

Jeff Peterson, Navy veteran

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