Meet Filipe

Olá! My name is Filipe Neves, I’m 35, and I come from Lisbon, Portugal. I have an almost 2-year-old baby named Afonso, and I’m expecting a second son, yet to be named :). My background is Computer Engineering, and I have been working mostly as a Web Developer. I’ve been freelancing for over a year now, after roughly seven years in a Portuguese Marketing Agency. I’ve always been very keen on working with data, and that’s something I want to deal with in the short-term.

What was your favorite part of this week at Bootcamp?

We’re finally getting deep into Machine Learning, after some time establishing some solid foundations, so things are getting more and more interesting. During the Bootcamp, we’ve been in close contact with quite a few top companies in the field of data science. That’s been really helpful to understand how relevant this field actually is, and how the data science departments are typically organized. That’s something that we couldn’t grasp easily otherwise. With regards to company visits, it was an especially fruitful week: we had Indra on Tuesday, McKinsey on Wednesday, and EY on Friday. I have to say that the McKinsey one was particularly appealing, showcasing a really interesting set of projects, having a highly motivated and skillful team, and a cool office too.

What was the hardest part of this week at Bootcamp?

It’s been a busy week all around. The Demo Day is getting closer, and there’s still a ton of stuff to do in our capstone projects.   We’re integrating new techniques as we learn, or even before learning! So that’s tricky to manage, considering our crazy schedule. But overall, it’s been really rewarding.

What do you like to do outside Bootcamp?

I’m not exactly a newcomer in Madrid. This is actually the second time I’m living here. I had a scholarship to work here back in 2009, so I learned how to love la Movida back then 🙂 It’s been really good to be back. There are even a couple of old buddies from college living in Madrid; one of them is actually hosting me for the time being, so it all adds up to a home away from home feeling.

“This week, some other Bootcampers and I got the chance get in the mix in something really vibrant in Madrid – Football! We got to watch a Champions League game, Atletico vs. Roma. Great game, the vibe was crazy! And we got really lucky; the first goal was a crazy bicycle kick 🙂

I’m quite an active person, and one thing that I missed in the first days of the Bootcamp, besides family, was sports practice. I’m really into surfing, which obviously I can’t do here… Anyway, there’s a ton of things to compensate for that! I’m attending the yoga classes (even with the crazy schedule) my goal is to make a perfect headstand until the end of the Bootcamp I got a bike for commuting, and I was lucky enough to have another Bootcamper inviting me to play for his football team, thanks, Eric!

Filipe’s also the winner of the Data Science Bootcamp Summer Challenge. Hear more from Filipe about his project.