Margot Falkenberg spent eight years managing a café in Bondi before deciding she needed a change. She'd always been interested in how search worked but never thought it was something she could actually do.

She started with our foundation modules in early 2024. The first month was rough—lots of late nights after shifts, trying to wrap her head around analytics and algorithm basics. But she kept showing up to office hours, asking questions that got more specific each week.

Brynjar Thorvaldsson had worked in retail management for nearly two decades. When his company restructured, he decided to explore something he'd been curious about for years—how businesses actually get found online.

He was honest from the start: he wasn't particularly tech-savvy. But he was methodical. He took detailed notes, redid exercises when they didn't click the first time, and gradually built up his confidence with keyword tools and analytics platforms.

Ailith Dunbar already ran a small freelance writing business but kept losing potential clients who wanted someone who could also handle their SEO. She was tired of referring that work out.

The technical modules challenged her, especially the parts about site structure and indexing. She paired up with another student through our community forum, and they worked through the trickier concepts together. That partnership turned out to be one of the most valuable parts of her experience.