Backend Engineer seeking advice: Exceptional Promise

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Good day everyone, I am a backend engineer with 4 years of experience,

please i reached out to someone on TikTok EP Advisory to know if am eligible with my evidence and she said that i need to have up to 1500 or more github contributions per year to apply or build something that does not exist in UK tech sector so am not qualified, so i already gave up but this morning, i saw on the tech nation application Guidelines it never mentioned github contribution 1500 or that my innovation must be something that does not already exist in UK tech sector. Below are what i intend to submit as my evidence

Evidences:
CV
PERSONAL STATMENT
3 Recommendations letter (1 from a CTO and a senior developer of one the fintech companies i have worked with, with over 10 years experience, i also worked directly under him, in some projects i handled) (2 from a CEO and founder of a product Led company, i have worked with him for sometime and also the organizer of the organization i mentored, he is currently base in UK) (3 from CEO of a product-led company that i worked with in my early career days)

MC: demonstrate that I have been recognised as (or recognised as having the potential to be) a leading talent in the digital technology sector in the last 5 years?

Evidence: I have directly contributed to the growth and efficiency of multiple fintech companies by handling critical API integrations, including:

GTBank APIs: Implemented a backup transfer method for when NIBSS is down.
VFD & CoralPay: Integrated third-party payment solutions, ensuring alternative transfer methods.

Evidence to support: Screenshots of my source code from GTBank, VFD, and CoralPay API integrations.
Screenshots of my chats with third-party providers (showing my direct involvement).
Reference letters from the company line manager, confirming:

My role in leading those integrations.
How my work improved reliability and efficiency in the organization

OC2: demonstrate that I have been recognised for my work outside of my immediate occupation that contributed to the advancement of the digital technology sector?

Evidence: screenshots of my contribution to an open source project and GitHub links to show my PR was merged after some corrections

Screenshots of my contributions to Stack Overflow(answering of questions that regard coding), as of 2021

and my GitHub profile link to show active contributions to the collaborative company project
also evidence of mentoring, but then I saw that the mentorship must be in person, but mine was remotely, but I had multiple meetings with the students as required by the organization, I graded the tasks with feedback,etc, I don’t know if that will still work

OC3: demonstrate that I have made a significant technical, commercial, or entrepreneurial contribution to the field as a founder, senior executive, board member, or employee of a product-led digital technology company?

Evidence: I am still trying to gather evidence for these since I have worked or led so many projects in most of the companies I have worked with, and I can also get a reference letter to prove that I led the projects

Please, with the evidence I have above, do you think I should add more to it, and what should I add to increase my chances, or should I just give up on applying Please, I need advice

I really appreciate your advice

@Carthy

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@pahuja @Francisca_Chiedu @hsafra
Please, i would appreciate it if you share your advice

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Hi Prisca, your evidences need some enhancements. First, disregard the 1500 GitHub contribution requirement - it’s not in Tech Nation’s criteria. Focus instead on demonstrating impact: quantify how your API integrations reduced downtime percentages or increased transaction success rates, and get reference letters to explicitly confirm this impact. For OC2, make sure your mentorship evidence matches official requirements. It’s really difficult to meet this requirement.

Your OC3 evidence requires clearer leadership proof. Highlight specific products you architected/led, with metrics like user growth or revenue increases tied to your work. Combine reference letters from CTOs/CEOs with technical documentation showing your direct contributions. Avoid code screenshots—instead use architecture diagrams or system impact reports authenticated by employers.

Prioritize evidence diversity: 6-10 unique documents across criteria. Label each PDF clearly (e.g., “OC3 - Lead Engineer - CoralPay Integration”) matching Tech Nation’s wording. Emphasize how your fintech experience fills UK skill gaps in payment infrastructure resilience - this narrative alignment is crucial. With these adjustments, your profile should meet Promise route requirements.

1 Like
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Thank you very much @Akash_Joshi for your feedback. I will work on it

but i have some questions regarding OC2, my mentorship evidence actually matches the requirement where they said it has to be in person mentor, so i am trying to add a statement telling them the importance of giving students the chance of learning from the comfort of my home , considering it is a non-profit organization and how it also impacted my life and career in tech, then i can attach my mentorship evidence including the contribution to source codes
do you think that can be considered

for OC3: when you say technical documentation, will postman documentation of the Apis be considered, and will screenshots of my chats in Skype with the third party providers be enough to prove my direct involvement in the implementation, and also a reference letter

Also, the place where you said, emphasize how your fintech experience fills UK skill gaps in payment infrastructure resilience
Should I add that in my personal statement or when providing the OC3 evidence

@Akash_Joshi

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  1. I don’t think that’s enough for OC2. It needs to be a structured program with a selection criteria.
  2. Documentation. Chats aren’t evidence. Reference letters are a good idea.
  3. Add it to both places.
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Thank you so @Akash_Joshi. I will work on these changes you mentioned