Nowadays, the IT industry is one of the most rapidly growing. What is not surprising, since computers accompany us in our daily lives and surround us at every turn. Therefore, the demand for programmer jobs and programmers is high and growing all the time.
Basic issues of computer programmers
As we mentioned in the introduction, programmers are plentiful. But there is still a shortage of them, so this profession has the comfort that the fear of job security does not concern them.
What do computer programmers do?
A programmer creates codes for computer programs in a computer language, meaning a character structure organized according to strict rules, that he chooses to use in computer programming
How to become a programmer?
Is a college degree necessary? Am I able to learn everything on my own? These are probably the questions you are asking yourself right now. So, to become a programmer, there is basically no single path that leads to the start of the career. Fresh out of school, you can both go to college and get the degree. If going to the university doesn’t make sense for you, you can start learning at home. Choosing this option, courses might be a good investment.
Seniors in the IT industry opine that college is not necessary to start with computer programming. And even if one decides to go to college, in addition to working toward a degree, there is the independent work required to start a career. Statistics say that one in four programmers decides to drop out of college, and what is more interesting, their salary as a programmer is exactly the same! The reason for this phenomenon is that the salary programmer can get is associated mainly with his seniority.
What qualities are useful in computer programming jobs?
First of all, high skills in analysis. In addition to looking for the causes of a problem, it is a duty to find a solution. Standard communication and teamwork skills, as well as easy adaptation to changes in the market, which are a daily occurrence in this profession. In addition, math is extremely helpful. It allows you to enter more easily into the world of algorithms, functions, loops. Of course, language competence is incredibly important. English at a high level, since most programs are in this language. In addition, as in any job, linguistic skills are welcome, a client can hit us from any latitude.
At what age can I become a programmer?
There is no top-down limit. This is such a flexible profession that, as you can see, you can acquire competence on your own, your age will not change anything. It all depends on your organization, capabilities and learning pace. There is nothing to be afraid of in looking for computer programming jobs, everything is in your hands! Of course, the younger you are, the easier it is to learn something new.
First step
Choose your specialty. It's a good idea to focus on one thing in which you will be able to develop further and fully concentrate on it. Choices include website development, game development, mobile application development, device development and being a low-layer software programmer. As you can see, there is a wide range of possibilities.
Basic classification of specializations is based on 3 categories:
- Front - end: you only deal with the part that users see
- Back - end: you are responsible for the entire driving force of the program. Server application, handling database and inter-server communication
- Full stack developer: the above two skills are not alien to you. Especially useful for freelance work.
Second step
How to start coding? As we mentioned, although a college degree is not necessary, you can't do without learning. You can study in absentia, at an online programming school, or compliantly devote yourself to education in online courses. After completing the basic ones, it’s time for reading project documentation and using GitHub.
First of all, choose a programming language and learn it from scratch. Practice as much as you can, code as much as you can. Be active in the programming community, and benefit from the knowledge of seniors. Learning can be quite tedious, but remember how it can pay off in the future. At this stage, you should be able to verify if coding is your passion or not.
Third step
An incredibly important aspect is to create your portfolio. For an employer this is very important, he will be able to assess your skills, what you can offer the company in the future. A business card on Linkedin is also an absolute must-have. We are to live in an era where it is the job that is looking for a programmer and not the other way around, so it is worth taking advantage of this.
Programmers salary
This is probably the most talked about part of a computer programmer's job. Formerly, we assessed the chances of becoming a programmer for a person without a degree. Just as you already know that this is as real as possible, so are earnings on par with colleagues who have graduated from college. In exchange for the aforementioned basics, employers are able to offer beginner earnings of up to about $5,000. After a few years on the job, you can expect that your programmer salary will be as high as several tens of thousands.
Being an employee or a freelancer?
The answer is not so obvious. There are IT companies, they employ IT specialists on a large scale. That is, to put it simply, companies usually handle one large order, each employee is delegated to a different department and activities. On the other hand, if you choose to be a freelancer, you have to reckon with the cost of the equipment you provide yourself. What’s more, you will not be able to get some benefits. However, because of this, you are able to pick and choose between offers, assignments and clients, choosing what you would like to deal with. There’s a big chance that working as a freelancer will be more suitable for you.
It seems that careers in coding are not that complicated. The decision itself is not difficult, you are not limited by any high requirements, and you don’t have to get a degree in coding. The only requirement is the willingness to learn, which in the future will repay us with interesting work and very attractive payrolls. The most difficult part of computer programming is to begin.
