Learning to Earning: From Festival Production to Facilities Project Analyst
Last updated: September 2026
We're excited to share our new Learning to Earning series on CareerCircle. These stories document interviews our team had with CareerCircle members who built new skills and landed new roles. Each story is unique, and while all outcomes are different, these conversations give insight into how some of our members succeeded and provide ideas for how other members can get the most out of our platform.
After finishing a 16-week fellowship and earning two Google career certificates, she continued maximizing her job search by joining various boards. Four months after creating her CareerCircle profile, a recruiter found her and reached out about a role she had never applied for: a six-month contract with a nonprofit affordable housing organization in Berkeley, California. This eventually became a full-time position that her employer created based on her skills. Next month marks one year in the role for Phuong.
This is her story, in her words.
*Answers in this interview have been edited for clarity and readability.
Before CareerCircle
What kind of work were you doing before your career change?
"Prior to my work today as a facilities project analyst, I was an events professional. I worked on a lot of event production, curation, and management, especially in the festival setting. That was my niche prior to COVID."
Was there a point in your job search where you felt stuck or discouraged?
"Oh, absolutely. As a career changer, when COVID hit, my entire career was wiped out because I couldn't work at events anymore. I couldn't be in person. I had a really hard time trying to find the resources to help me navigate that change and adapt to those circumstances. But it pushed me to be resilient. I went out of my way to find those resources."
How did you approach starting over in a completely new field?
"When you go to college, the usual anticipation is to find your niche in a major, and then that's a career that you're developing for a majority of your life. But I strongly believe that life circumstances should not derail you from sticking to that singular niche. I think there's value in combining all of that to make your own unique professional branding, despite the circumstances. I realized that developing transferable skills and exploring other avenues was really important, just for the sake of survival."
How She Heard About CareerCircle
How did you first hear about CareerCircle?
"CareerCircle was introduced to me through my fellowship. I liked reading my email newsletters and seeing what they posted. We would get these notifications, like, oh yeah, here, check this out. And I thought, sure, I need a job."
What stood out to you about CareerCircle compared to other job boards?
"I appreciated that there was a job board, and that I could filter jobs based on the Google career certificate I had. Everyone's very aware of LinkedIn, Indeed, Monster.com, you name it. CareerCircle was really new to me, and it was a great additional resource to go to."
What She Did to Grow
Which certifications did you earn, and why those?
"What brought me to the Google Data Analytics career certificate was the fellowship. They offered people who wanted to transition into tech the chance to develop technical skills, whether in data analytics or digital marketing. They also provided Coursera courses for free, so I did data analytics through their track.
Additionally, I knew that the Google AI Essentials certificate that had recently been released was also free at the time, and I took that course as an opportunity to develop those skills. With AI being so ingrained into our work culture, as a means to adapt to current industry trends, the course made a lot of sense."
What is your approach to finding and using free resources?
"Whatever resource each opportunity presents to me, I will take the time to look through it, because you never know the benefits of it. So whoever I speak to, it's like, maximize your resources. You may not know much about this. You never know how it's going to benefit you. And who knows, it might benefit somebody else. We're dealing with a plethora of resources, and we need to help each other find whatever it takes to help that person achieve their professional goals."
Are you planning to earn more certifications?
"I would love to take more. There's the business intelligence one, and the Power BI one with Microsoft that I want to take."
Getting the Job
How did the recruiter find you?
"One of the recruiters who reached out to me found my resume on CareerCircle, and it wasn't even tied to a role I applied for. It was tied to a completely separate role. I thought it was a scam. So I directly asked her, hey, how did you find my resume? And we went on a Microsoft Teams meeting and she showed me the CRM software and how it was connected to CareerCircle. That led to the opportunity."
Did your Google certificate come up when you spoke with the recruiter?
"Surprisingly, I think that was the biggest indicator. I remember the recruiter mentioning that she did look for my resume, but the certificate was a really good way of filtering. That made me believe the certificate did benefit me in grabbing recruiters' attention."
What did the new job mean for you financially?
"I would say a huge wage increase. I'm hopeful that my story will help encourage people, especially during a really interesting time in the job market."
After CareerCircle
How did your six-month contract turn into a full-time role?
"Within three months of that contract, I was very honored that they started noticing my skills and they wanted to create the role for me. It was a three-month conversation of what kind of role would work for me. They also seemed impressed that I was continuously learning and upskilling. That started back in October 2025, so I'm hitting my one year next month. It's crazy how fast time flies.
What would you say to a job seeker who feels stuck right now?
"It's a matter of developing new strategies on how to get through the job search. Don't let standard societal norms get to you. Just focus on what you can acquire and what you can control. No matter the circumstance, you can create that opportunity for yourself to build your career. A lot of folks think that a job will help you develop that opportunity, and of course it will, but I see that as a situation you can't control, because that decision is made by a third party. So if people are looking to develop those skills and grow their career, find those opportunities outside of a traditional path."
How would you describe CareerCircle to a friend?
"It's the reason why I have my job today. I would say, hey, it's another job board that helps connect your certifications to these opportunities. Treat it as another resource for you to use to connect with people, just like how you do with Handshake, LinkedIn, and Indeed. Use CareerCircle as well, because it's new, but it's growing, and it has good opportunities."
Phuong built her skills, kept her profile current, and was recruited for a role she never applied to. If you have certifications and want them in front of recruiters who are hiring for the skills you have, start with making your profile. If you’re looking to upskill, just like Phuoung, check out our free courses.
