In a modern digital world, code is all around us. If you are seeking a future-proof professional career then becoming a coder isn’t a bad bet – but how?
Pursuing a career in computers, and especially coding, is a popular choice.
IT employment demand is estimated to rise 13% this decade – the most of all occupations.
Every company in any industry needs programming resources of some kind. This huge demand makes developer graduates hot property for high-paid coding jobs.
We’ve teamed up with Broadband.co.uk to bring you this article, where we’ll examine the best pathways to getting started as a coder.
Pick a coding discipline and learn a language
One of the first things you might want to think about is – what do I want to code for? Consider where your interest lies and where those passions might be best placed.
Often this choice will influence the coding languages most relevant for learning.
Areas of expertise for coders
As with most industries, professional coding falls within various areas of focus.
4 typical expertise areas for a modern coding career:
- Backend (server-side) development. The logic that runs “behind the scenes” of a website, app or interface. This is the nuts and bolts of programming.
- Frontend development or UX Design. Requires code and design skills to build the frontend, the bit that users see – regardless of application.
- Web/Mobile app design & development. Blends a visual, creative eye with the coding skills to make a website or app look pretty but also perform functions.
- Game Developer/Programmer. Software coder who specialises in writing video or computer games across multiple platforms.
Although these areas can be hugely diverse, they also overlap. Just because you specialise, the principles and skills of coding are largely universal.
What types of languages are there?
Certain types of development and coding methodologies will favour certain programming languages. These tend to fall into two categories, low-level and high-level.
- Low-level languages: Have little to no abstraction from computer instructions, so appear like machine code that is harder for humans to interpret.
- High-level languages: Has a syntax or command set that reads more closely to real words, so has a higher level of abstraction.
High-level languages are naturally easier to learn and require less technical knowledge of computer architecture. Low-level coding is usually associated more with IT engineering and embedded systems.
So what language(s) should I learn?
Popular high-level languages today would include Python, C++ and Java. For web development, we might add scripting languages such as PHP and JavaScript.
JavaScript is a great beginner option for a couple of reasons. Firstly, it sits nicely beside familiar markup languages in HTML and CSS.
Secondly, it’s a client-side language. JavaScript code can run locally within your web browser making it easy to test, debug and develop with.
Learning fundamental coding “constructs” with one will give a great grounding.
Academia and gaining qualifications
Traditionally, a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science is known to be the desired academic route. Graduates on course to achieve 2:1 or 1st Class honours are often tracked for jobs by big employers keen to source the best.
However, it isn’t always the way that you need college or university endorsements to kickstart a coding career.
Online training programmes
Learning to code and formally evaluate your ability can be done through online academies.
Options like Code Institute offer remote learning diplomas like the year-long Full Stack Software Development course. Recognised by the industry, they even offer an introductory free 5-day “bootcamp” on coding HTML, CSS and JavaScript.
Bootcamps are actually a great way to learn and engage with the coding community. School of Code, Le Wagon, Codeworks and Codecademy all offer flexible ways to progress your prospects, both on-site or remotely.
YouTube too is an amazing home learning resource. Channels like Code with Ania Kubów are hugely inspiring ways to master core programming skills.
Putting it into practice
Unsure of how to sharpen and show off your new skills? There are a couple of ways for a budding professional coder to get noticed:
- Setup a portfolio website. Design and code a custom website to host your CV and personal coding experiments.
- Contribute to GitHub. Make your best coding projects public on the world’s biggest open-source developer community.
Demonstrating talent and enthusiasm, wherever you can, will always impress potential employers. Speak to tech employment agencies about entry-level or junior roles, or try pitching for freelance work.
By staying versatile and willing to learn, a long happy career in coding beckons!
About the Author
Mark Billen is a tech journalist who studied Software Engineering and Management BSc (Hons) at Bournemouth University – one of the UK’s leading institutions for technology subjects. His coding “career” spans early experiments in Visual Basic, to low-level forays into Assembly Language. HTML, CSS and JavaScript remain his favourites today.