Land a Software Job in 6 Months!

UpdatedMarch 3, 2021

I'm a software engineer interested in Cloud technologies and web applications.

Comments (7)

A Platform is equipped with all the hardware required to develop applications. Platforms are the kind of complete system that does not just include SDK but also the environment that a specific software will be run. The Java platform includes all elements required to build an application and the JRE to ensure that the application can run. That's why Java is also a platform and a language.

Phillip Ninan4y ago

Java is my go-to coding language! However, if I'm working on a side project I usually go with something more lightweight like TypeScript.

Rufai Kudus Adeboye5y ago

nice article

Edidiong Asikpo (Didi)5y ago

This is a very insightful read Phillip Ninan. It will be very useful to a lot of newbies.

Jake Damon5y ago

Wow, this is one of the best "How to Get Started" post I've seen!

Efrén Vázquez5y ago

Just a friendly reminder that each one of us learn in different ways and may need different periods of time to learn something, it's cool what Phillip Ninan did here to help people with a solid plan, but also consider that learning is a process and this process is different for each one of you.

I wanted to mention this because of this point exactly:

Learn it using official docs, YouTube & Udemy if needed. After, transfer all created apps to the TypeScript. Allocate 1 week.

I mean, I'm not sure about that statement. For me it doesn't look realistic. May be I'm wrong too.

However, rushing things out when learning can sometimes lead to bad practices or to write bad code when working in real world projects. Take your time to learn and do it well.

Anyway, great post, thank you Phillip Ninan!

Phillip Ninan5y ago

Thank you for the feedback Efrén Vázquez! Would you recommend any other medium for learning?

One of my co-workers gave a tech talk a while back. In it, he stated, "If you know JavaScript, you already know TypeScript." That really resonated with me.

I do feel like at that point in the roadmap TypeScript would not be super difficult. I think the exercise of transforming a JavaScript project into TypeScript would significantly decrease the time it takes to learn the basics. Learning what Strong Typing and Interfaces are as well as developing and deploying a TS app would be the bare minimum.

Lastly, I clearly state in the conclusion that this roadmap is not going to make you an expert. It is meant as a means to learn JUST ENOUGH to get your foot in the door for that FIRST gig.

Vuong5y ago

Great post for beginners

Phillip Ninan5y ago

Thank you!

Catalin Pit5y ago

Great article! Hopefully, it will help beginners! 👍

Phillip Ninan5y ago

Thank you!

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Phillip Ninan's Blog

39 posts

I'm a software engineer specialized in AWS, software architecture, CI/CD, and backend development for complex scalable web apps.

I have JS, PHP, HTML & CSS, but where would you suggest I go next? There’s so much to learn and it’s very confusing. I’m really scared of getting things wrong. Or asking for a road map if you like.

This is a hard question to answer. You need to ask yourself, "What are my goals"?

Do you want to be able to build apps? Web apps?
Do you want to design very pretty-looking websites?
Do you want to want to make cool websites and get them to be on the first page of Google (SEO)?
Are you interested in AI or ML? Do you like databases?

Once you figure out your goal(s), you can put a plan in place. I can help you figure out what steps you should take forward! All you need are some stepping stones. We can create a road map on how to accomplish your goal. Here is a simple roadmap for becoming a web application developer.

🐦 Follow me on Twitter to see even more content! 🐦

!IMPORTANT!

This is a high-level roadmap. This is not intended to turn you into an expert. This is ONE of MANY ways to HELP you land an entry-level web developer job. I have close to a decade of experience writing code. I regularly interview entry-level developers. If you were to complete each of these steps, absorb the material, and be able to speak intelligently about these topics I would be impressed. Take this advice with a grain of salt.

1. Learn HTML and CSS

FreeCodeCamp is a great resource for this. HTML and CSS is the foundation for any web application. Allocate 2-3 weeks for this.

2. Recreate 3 Popular Websites

Develop a landing page(s) using only HTML and CSS. Apple, GitHub, and Netflix are great choices! Understanding how popular websites are built will allow you to follow great patterns when you develop your own. Allocate 1-2 weeks to accomplish this.

3. Learn JavaScript and NPM

FreeCodeCamp and MDN are great resources for this. All modern websites utilize some sort of JavaScript framework. Node and NPM are tools used to work with these frameworks. They allow you to use libraries and tools that someone else has already written! Allocate 2-3 weeks.

4. Recreate 2 Popular Websites with JavaScript

Pick 2 complex projects and recreate their basic functionality using JavaScript, HTML, and CSS. Soundcloud and Twitter are great examples. Allocate 2-3 weeks.

5. Learn How Computers and the Internet Works

Search YouTube and Wikipedia and focus on the Application layer, HTTP, and how modern web apps work. You need to understand the basics of how web applications communicate. Allocate 1-2 weeks.

6. Learn Git and Deploying

All software projects should use source control. Atlassian has great git tutorials. Deploy your projects to Netlify or Vercel. Allocate 1-2 weeks.

7. Learn NodeJs and Express

Use official tutorials, then YouTube and StackOverflow if you don't understand something. I have a getting started tutorial here. Express and Node are great frameworks for build web applications QUICKLY. Allocate 2 weeks.

8. Learn ReactJS and Redux.

I am a big advocate for Angular. But I think ReactJS is in the biggest demand right now. Kent C. Dodds has a great course. Udemy also has some great courses. Allocate 3 weeks.

9. Learn GraphQL

Use official tutorials and YouTube (Udemy if needed). Then transfer your created apps to GraphQL. It should be relatively easy to migrate a small project to GraphQL, especially if you've gotten this far! Allocate 1 week.

10. Learn TypeScript

Learn it using official docs, YouTube & Udemy if needed. After, transfer all created apps to the TypeScript. I have written a great article describing how to convert ExpressJS to TypeScript. Allocate 1 week.

11. Build 2 Complex Applications

Pick a popular service and recreate the core functionality using learned stack: ReactJS, React Ecosystem, GraphQL, TypeScript, and ExpressJS. Then you will deploy it and put it on your resume. Allocate 2-4 weeks.

12. Create a resume, LinkedIn profile and apply for jobs

It should take you 1-4 weeks to land a job.

Conclusion

This should take you roughly ~6 months. This roadmap is not meant to make you an expert. But it should make you competent enough to land an entry-level software developer job. If you complete this roadmap I am very confident that you will be a very marketable developer! Good Luck! Reach out to me for ANY help!

🐦 Follow me on Twitter to see even more content! 🐦

This roadmap was inspired by Nick Bull!

Command Palette

Comments (7)

More from this blog

!IMPORTANT!

1. Learn HTML and CSS

2. Recreate 3 Popular Websites

3. Learn JavaScript and NPM

4. Recreate 2 Popular Websites with JavaScript

5. Learn How Computers and the Internet Works

6. Learn Git and Deploying

7. Learn NodeJs and Express

8. Learn ReactJS and Redux.

9. Learn GraphQL

10. Learn TypeScript

11. Build 2 Complex Applications

12. Create a resume, LinkedIn profile and apply for jobs

Conclusion