My journey into tech has been a bit unconventional. I quickly lost interest in the university program, so I spent more time on personal projects or reading articles rather than focusing on getting credits. I was expelled a few times, but eventually, I managed to finish my degree. However, most of what has been truly valuable came from self-learning: online courses, books, blogs, and conversations with more experienced people.
I entered the tech field in 2015 as a developer, working with Ruby, Go, and some PHP, handling servers, and troubleshooting production issues. In 2017, I developed an interest in machine learning, took a few introductory courses, joined Kaggle competitions, and began integrating models into live services. Since then, I’ve kept learning—reading articles in the evenings, experimenting with new libraries on weekends, and occasionally joining hackathons to explore new things.
In short, what helped me grow was simple curiosity, the willingness to admit when I didn't know something, and the people around me—colleagues and the community, with whom I could discuss ideas and get honest feedback. Plus, small side projects: they provide quick feedback and allow you to experiment with new technologies without much risk.
I knew about the program earlier, but I only became seriously interested in 2023 when two of my colleagues from Avito successfully obtained the visa. At first, I thought Global Talent was for people much higher up the career ladder than me, so I put the idea aside. But over time, I realized there was a chance. At the beginning of 2024, I started working with Immigram.
To be honest, I didn’t seriously consider doing everything myself from the very beginning. There were too many nuances and tricky spots: from the wording in support letters to what documents would carry more weight with TN. While I could have eventually figured it out, I preferred saving my nerves and having experts around who had already been through the process many times. The fact that specialists are involved in your application immediately reduces stress.
So, from day one, I began looking for professionals who specialize in preparing cases, checking out a few agencies, speaking with independent consultants, and comparing their approaches.
I decided my main focus after starting was to quickly boost my public track record. For a couple of months, I barely touched the case lead—I wrote articles, applied for meetups, and spoke at two conferences in a row to build my portfolio. The schedule was hectic, but by summer, I had several publications and a talk with a solid view count.
Spoiler: the “content first, then strategy” approach wasn’t ideal. When I reviewed the materials with the case lead, some activities didn’t meet the criteria, and others could’ve been presented more effectively with earlier planning and communication.
When it came to organizing the documents, it boiled down to simply exchanging files: I dumped a huge amount of material on Immigram—long descriptions, metrics, code snippets, screenshots, reviews, and internal presentations. I tried to provide as detailed explanations as possible, without filtering anything: the more details, the better the team's chances of gathering the most impactful summary from them. They then took this pile of information, cut out the excess, kept the strongest arguments, and put them into a neat set of evidence.
Due to the technical depth of my projects, it took several months to prepare detailed descriptions, but this is exactly why you work with an agency: I provide all the context, and they turn it into a clear, "sellable" package. What surprised me was how accurate their judgment was: they looked at the document and immediately knew what "worked," what was weaker, and made decisions based on the latest case statistics—what had passed recently and what had failed. In the end, the process turned out to be predictable and logical, and I could see how my "raw material" was gradually turning into a strong story for Tech Nation.
Surprisingly, the most difficult part was gathering signatures for the recommendations. It seemed straightforward—people were willing to help and responded positively, so what could go wrong? But in reality, someone went on vacation, someone had a sudden tight deadline, or corporate policies prevented access to personal email. As a result, the document could sit unsigned for a week simply because the person was constantly flying. In this case, Immigram occasionally stepped in, helped with reminders, and explained the formats, so the process didn’t fall apart.
There weren’t any major issues with the content, aside from my own attention to detail. I knew no agency would be able to capture an ML specialist’s achievements with the precise engineering focus I wanted—there were simply too many technical details. So, with almost every version of the documents, I’d review them, leaving comments in red like "correct this formula," "the tone doesn’t fit here," and "be sure to specify which data we used." There were plenty of revisions, but I suppose that’s just how it goes: if you want the story to truly reflect your voice, you have to put in the effort.
The visa has literally given me a home: after two years of living out of a suitcase, I’m finally settling in UK and no longer worrying about where I'll be in a month. I now have a sense of stability and a normal daily routine.
Professionally, this is also a huge advantage. I’m transitioning from applied machine learning in product-focused roles to fintech and algorithmic trading — and London is one of the world’s top hubs for both.
There’s a vibrant scene of hedge funds and prop shops, but also world-class opportunities in product ML at companies like Google, Meta, DeepMind, and OpenAI.
It’s easy to attend meetups, connect with teams, and look for projects or collaborators.
Don’t be afraid. Seriously— the biggest barrier is thinking, "This isn’t for me, I’m not good enough." When I first looked at the Global Talent Visa, it felt like only superhumans could qualify. In reality, it's a bureaucratic process: you need to gather stories, data, signatures, and present them in a way Tech Nation likes.
Ultimately, it’s not about the number of documents, but your confidence: when you truly believe your experience is unique and valuable, Tech Nation’s experts can sense that. Once you have the strong internal belief of “yes, I’m a good fit,” the rest is just about presenting the facts effectively.
