From Waiting on Developers to Building Her Own Solutions

How Nelma turned curiosity into capability, unlocking new freedom in her design career

Meet Nelma Ferreira

UX/UI Designer. Communicator at heart. Beer-at-the-beach enthusiast.

Nelma spent over a decade in communication design before pivoting into UX/UI. At 36, she worked full-time at a fast-growing tech company when she enrolled in “Desenvolvimento de Software SEM programação”, a program delivered through a partnership between Santander Open Academy and NoCode Institute. She wasn’t looking for a career shift—she was looking to break out of a creative bottleneck. Oh, and she was also a new mom managing it all like a pro.

View Portfolio

"Basically, this is it." That phrase became the unofficial slogan of our final projects—because even when we thought our work was “basic,” the outcomes were impressive. Real. Market-ready. We surprised ourselves with what we could do.

Nelma Ferreira

Student from “Software Development without Coding” 2024

The Challenge

Nelma was stuck in a familiar designer dilemma: always waiting on developers to bring her ideas to life. Although she had dipped into low-code tools like OutSystems and Wix, she felt limited—curious but not confident. She was juggling a paid programming course and full-time work, but still felt like she didn’t have the power to build.

The Transformation

“I thought I needed programmers. I don’t think that anymore.”

No-Code unlocked more than tools—it opened a new mindset.

What stood out most?

She discovered the massive ecosystem of no-code platforms she never knew existed;
Fell in love with databases and automations, which she now applies even in her personal life;
Learned to focus on done over perfect, boosting her productivity at work;
Built “HOMEPLANR,” a personal project she'd been dreaming about—now nearly ready to launch.

And through it all, she balanced it with parenting, full-time work, and zero weekend burnout. Respect.

Behind the scenes

Favorite
Tool

Airtable (“Now I want to database everything”)

Favourite mission

Final project week—despite only having 5 days to build

Biggest challenge

Balancing the course with work and parenting

Most valuable learning

“Done is better than perfect—and it’s still powerful”

What's next for Nelma

Nelma is using her new skills to add value to freelance projects and pitch more confidently at work, and she plans to lead her own design team one day.

She didn’t take the course to change careers—she took it to expand her toolbox.

And that’s exactly what she got:

Confidence. Capability. And the ability to say, “I’ve got this".

View Portfolio

Project Highlight

In the final stage of the Cohorts, students have the opportunity to create a Capstone Project to showcase what they have learned across the journey. They have the liberty to use whichever tool they want or even explore new ones, promoting their critical thinking and proactivity. Always with the support of our Mentors.

Nelma loves to organize things, but she has a hard time keeping the maintenance necessities in her home up to date. When the Capstone Project arrived, she decided to create HomePlanr: an app designed to help users keep track of their home inventory and schedule regular maintenance tasks.

“I started this to manage my own home and insurance info. Turns out, a lot of people need this.”

The Results

✅ Inventory Management: Log and categorize household items.
✅ Maintenance tasks: Set and receive reminders.
✅ Resource Center: Access home maintenance tips.

Built with: Figma, Airtable, Softr, Gumroad, BravoStudio.

View Project

Programs

Want to turn curiosity into creation like Nelma did?

It’s time to embrace the power within you and open the doors to a world of no-code. Check out our program selection to get a head start on finding another career for yourself.