So, after completing some free online programming courses and gone through a three to six-month coding Bootcamp.You are now a professional developer who is ready to get a top-paying job?
Statistics culled from reviewing bootcamps shows that 17 of the 24 reviewed bootcamps claimed
that a minimum of 90% of their students got freelancing positions or full-time programming jobs within 6 – 12 months of graduation.
According to a report by the Coding Bootcamp Market Sizing, individual Bootcamp graduates find it difficult to standout in the job market because it is flooded with graduates from bootcamps.
Is coding bootcamps a guarantee to the developers that they will be getting coding jobs after graduation? The answer is NO!
EXPERT MENTORSHIP:
Imagine how great it would be when a programming expert mentors you? This would give you almost unlimited access to years of experience and expertise that cannot be gotten at Bootcamps.
Being mentored by someone who is well known in your career path is a significant boost to getting employed. Why? Employers would believe that you have learned a lot from them and would also excel just as they did (and possibly supersede them).
Advantages of expert mentorship:
Professional Coaching: You will be supervised by someone who has many years of knowledge in programming. You will get learn the best techniques used in carrying out tasks, use the best approach for problems, etc.
Get Reliable Answers: Most boot camps are short-staffed or do not have experienced coaches to handle questions from students who might be stuck at a point. Trying to find answers to these problems, most students tend to seek online help from social media groups or tech forums. They will be exposed to various answers that are not verified, and some might be misleading. Having an expert mentor would allow you to have a one on 1 with the mentor, and ask questions, get professional answers with practical demonstration.
Faster Learning: Being mentored by an expert would give you more exposure in your field. You will learn faster because you will be exposed to the essential skills needed to thrive in your field. You will also have a better understanding than people who went through Bootcamp.
REAL LIFE PROJECTS:
Been a good programmer is more than just mastering the syntax and learning the concepts of programming languages. An expert programmer knows how to use his coding knowledge to make programs and handle real-life projects.
One of the most repeated questions that bug new programmers who are still learning how to program is “Ideas for real projects to take on?”
Most times, people give the cliché answer like “build a command-line interface” and “build a chess game.”
Recruiters are tired of seeing just certifications from boot camps, they want to your portfolio filled with some reasonable personal projects or some previous work experience.
Your web portfolio is the most critical project, so make sure your portfolio is well built because employers judge developers through their portfolio design.
After that, you should embark on a personal project that can be used publicly, this project should be very useful, and that would give you a good score with your potential employer.
Some examples of such projects are:
Countdown Timer:
This should come out as an experimental project. You should add more features like Alarm, to-do list, reminder, memo, and many more. Make the interface very engaging that would convince an employer that you have a good understanding of programming. But make sure it is responsive and fast.
A Social Media App:
If you are a full-stack developer, then why not? Show them that you have gotten the skills and experience to land the job as a full-stack developer. Built a real responsive Social Media App, add some unique ideas and features to it, and this can make you go famous in an instant. Social media applications are very hard and challenging to make, so having it in your portfolio would surely give you’re an extra boost.
URL Shortener Service:
This may seem like a basic project, but this can land you a job. If you make an API that automatically shortens URLs, you will surely attract lots of people who want to reduce the length of URLs, and also employers won’t doubt your CV as a programmer.
The above-listed projects cover all three levels of development: URL shortener (Back-end), Countdown timer (front-end), and social media app (full stack).
CAREER COUNSELING:
This is also known as career guidance. It is designed to help people select, change, or leave a career; they also get to discover their strengths, weaknesses, and interests in a chosen career path.Choosing the right career might be difficult, but it is a very important decision that would determine your life turns out. Some people go and learn to program probably because it is a career path with a high demand for skilled employees, but they don’t have an interest in programming.
Even programming is a diverse filed with several branches. It is essential to go through proper career counseling to help you pick the right programming path. Some might be well skilled in web design, but they are looking for employment in web development. This would make it difficult to land a job.
Career counseling has the following benefits:
Gain More Knowledge: While allowing you to get a new certification, you also get to boost your knowledge and confidence. You will be more focused and have an in-depth knowledge of your chosen field.
Economic Gains: Choosing the right field would shorten the time of being unemployed and make you more productive. You will be exposed to more opportunities that would broaden your professional realm. You could make more money and have fun while doing so.
Expand Social Connection: Working at a suitable career would increase the social connection between you, co-workers, and clients. You will be more satisfied with the job than working in an unrelated field.