Sebastian Ruiz

Spending years in customer service can teach you a lot about patience, but it can also make you feel completely trapped.

For Sebastian Ruiz, day-to-day life used to mean answering endless phone calls while simultaneously managing a flooded email inbox. He was stuck, unable to move up, watching his stress levels rise, with little career mobility. 

“I started feeling stuck. I wasn’t moving up in my positions,” Sebastian remembers. “I think I was in a mindset of, ‘It’s too difficult.’ But the program showed me that I’m able to achieve more.”

Today, Sebastian’s working environment is completely different. Instead of weathering an endless barrage of angry customer service calls, his day is independent and quiet. He sits at the vanguard of the next massive technological revolution, working as a vehicle operator for Zoox—the industry leader in autonomous driving tech.

Landing a high-tech role at a cutting-edge company required a serious leap of faith, a massive commitment to full-time upskilling, and a vital financial safety net provided by Per Scholas’ Zero Percent Loan program.

Sebastian’s transition started with a simple conversation with a friend about IT opportunities, followed by a well-timed video on his social media feed. The ad introduced him to Per Scholas. Intrigued by the tuition-free model and the opportunity to make a comprehensive career pivot, he applied and enrolled in the CompTIA A+ technical training track.

However, committing to a full-time, intensive tech academy for a full day creates an immediate barrier for adults who have bills to pay. How do you afford rent and basic necessities when your day is entirely dedicated to studying?

That’s where the Per Scholas Zero Percent Loan program came in. Introduced by staff during a classroom session before the core technical material began, the program provided Sebastian with an interest-free $3,000 living stipend as a buffer.

“I remember the application process being pretty easy—it’s just a couple of digital forms,” Sebastian says. “Having that little buffer to not worry about rent, or just… little supplies here and there, definitely helped. Because we are full-time, it added that reprieve.”

Supported by that financial buffer and a free regional transit tap card provided by his campus coordinator, Sebastian was able to put his head down, block out distractions, and treat his education as his absolute number-one priority.

The Per Scholas classroom experience was intense, demanding, and thorough. Sebastian focused heavily on foundational infrastructure concepts, stacking up a formidable resume of certifications:

• CompTIA A+ Certification (Core Hardware & Software IT Fundamentals)
• Google IT Support Professional Certificate
• ServiceNow Fundamentals Training

While memorizing terminal commands and operating system architectures was critical, Sebastian notes that the academy’s professional development component was what truly unlocked his career potential.

“A big shout out to Kennedy for the interview prep and just getting me out of my shell,” Sebastian smiles. “All the activities that we did just made me more comfortable at ease answering questions. That practice… it comes with practice: just being able to talk about yourself, your accomplishments, and how you transition your different skill sets. It’s such a huge boon to be able to just articulate it.”

The combination of optimized technical skills and practiced interview confidence paid off instantly. The very first job Sebastian applied for after graduating was with Zoox, and he landed it.

His day-to-day role at Zoox is a fascinating fusion of hands-on technical management and data collection. Sebastian sets up the autonomous vehicles, loads their specific algorithmic missions, and monitors the cars while they remain self-driving for 80% of the day. He uses terminal commands in Linux environments to ensure the software safely collects precise field data. 

The change in his lifestyle, environment, and financial health has been staggering.

“It’s a big jump in pay from what I was making before, so that’s been a huge bonus,” Sebastian shares. “My favorite part of working in tech is being at the vanguard of a brand-new industry. We’re at the forefront of a major revolution in autonomous driving, and being able to say we’re making history is exciting for me.”

And he isn’t stopping there. Sebastian is already preparing to join Zoox’s elite Advanced Testing Team, which will task him with executing the complex digital mapping of Santa Monica and new driving environments.

When asked to select a single word to define his Per Scholas experience, Sebastian chose “rigorous”. He holds immense gratitude for the donors and partners who fund the technical grants and zero-interest loans, and he offers a blunt, realistic playbook for anyone looking to follow his footsteps:

• Sacrifice Your Social Life Temporarily: “Definitely make this your priority. Ignore… I know it’s daunting to not have a social life, but putting that aside and making this your number one priority so that you get through it—it’s well worth it.”
• Lean Hard on Interest-Free Financial Aid: If your local Per Scholas campus offers micro-grants or zero-percent loan opportunities, apply immediately. Sebastian notes that removing the background stress of monthly payments allowed him to excel in his coursework.
• Never Stop Stacking Knowledge: Sebastian was so inspired by the networking modules in his CompTIA A+ studies that he has already purchased test-prep books to self-study for his CompTIA Network+ certification on his own time.
• Ditch the Burnout: Don’t let yourself get comfortable in a dead-end customer service role out of fear that tech is too hard. “I only wish I had found out about this much, much sooner in my life,” Sebastian reflects. “I would have been making so much more money early on.”

Per Scholas bridges the gap between draining customer service roles and high-paying positions at the cutting edge of modern technology. Through tuition-free academies, interview prep coaching, and comprehensive support services, we give you the tools to rewrite your story.