If you are already 35 years old, this is not a reason not to start studying! Of course, when you have years of valuable experience in another industry behind you, it's not so easy, but it's not at all hopeless. We have a great example - Ilya from Odessa decided to retrain from an industrial climber to an industrial programmer at this very age. And he succeeded. Read one of the most engaging and solid success stories on CodeGym!
background
I want to share my story, because I feel a moral obligation to the wonderful people who created this resource, and to the community that it spawned. I would like to thank the creators at least somehow, and “Javarashovites” , who have not yet reached their cherished goal, to cheer up and support them with a good portion of motivation! Bottom line: I've been working as a programmer for two weeks now, and this is largely thanks to Java Rush .
I am 37 years old, married, two children 6 and 3 years old. For the last 15 years I have worked as an industrial climber (high-altitude). The work, as you know, is related to programming a little less than nothing.
By and large, the work is not bad, fresh air, it forces you to keep yourself in shape , there is enough free time, you are your own boss. Yes, and the money is not bad ( in season ). BUT :
It has a pronounced seasonality. That is 3-4 months in a year of work practically is not present .
No prospects. After working for 15 years in this field, I realized that in the next 5-10 years, it is very unlikely that something will change ( at least for the better ).
The children began to grow up, and the money was clearly not enough ...
It simply became annoying ... 15 years is a very long time, anything will get bored here.
So, in May 2013 , I weighed all the pros and cons and came to the conclusion that it was time to change the job ... And the one that is devoid of the shortcomings of the previous one. That is:
there is work all year round;
good growth prospects;
significantly higher salary ( if not immediately, then in the future );
an interesting job for which I have a penchant.
I had a penchant for programming. True, in practice, this was expressed only in the fact that at school I wrote a little in BASIC, even less in assembler ( on the ZX - Spectrum , aka Sinclair was once such a cult computer ). The disadvantages of the “ high-rise building” during my studies turned out to be a plus for me: all the free time that I had in abundance in the spring and especially in the winter, I could use to learn programming. Programming is a flexible concept. I "googled", weighed the prospects ... and my choice fell on her majesty Java .
Studies
My first book on Java was " Java Programming for Children, Parents, Grandparents " by Yakov Fine . I'm not sure if I recommend this book to beginners, maybe there are better books, but at that time it was interesting to read and quite understandable. the practical examples given there, I carefully worked out, which gave me the necessary minimum of practical skills for further advancement. After reading the book, I decided to look for courses. Full-time courses were expensive, and there was no certainty that they were worth it. And at that moment I remembered that while working on the book, somewhere (on habrahabr, it seems) I came across articles about CodeGym. And everything began to spin ... After reading and working through the book, the first 10 - 12 levelsI snapped like seeds, it was even too easy. But it's still interesting. Then it became more difficult and even more interesting.
I went through the levels strictly sequentially, i.e. gave a lecture, and while its understanding was fresh, solved problems for it, and did not proceed to the next lecture until all the previous problems were solved, with very rare exceptions. So I got to level 20 with 3-5 unsolved problems.
If you have problems with solving problems, of course, communication on the forum helps a lot, and at the same time, helping other members of the forum, you pump your skills yourself! Somewhere in half a year, I decided that it was time to try my luck and try myself at an interview. I googled resume examples, a few resume examples were sent to me by friends, I also wrote to Zepp ( head of Java Rush , approx. ed. ) and he gave me some tips and resume templates. I compiled it and sent it to Zepp for checking; he highly appreciated it. Next, I posted a resume on popular job search sites, compiled a list of addresses of HR departments of the largest IT companies in Odessa , in which there were Java Developer vacancies ( not only " juniors" )."). There were about 20 of them . Just in case, I immediately set aside half in case I screwed up everywhere, and sent out a resume to the other half.
First interviews
I won’t say that I was bombarded with invitations, but in the end, in a month and a half, I went to half a dozen interviews. Some were more or less successful, some not so much. There were two or three test tasks that I completed with varying degrees of success and one conversational English interview. I passed it successfully, but I didn’t get to the technical interview: I got ahead of another applicant. I also almost got to the so-called “benchmark” at Luxsoft: I passed tests, an interview, but at the last moment, when I read the contract, I changed my mind and refused. In short, they teach you for three months and pay a $300 scholarship . If they like you, they offer a job as a joon ( $ 500). After 9 months, they can raise their salary, but, as it turned out from the contract, if you do not attend courses or after the courses you want to change jobs for a year or two, you are obliged to pay them compensation for training in the amount of $ 2,500 . I found these conditions unacceptable and refused. I myself also refused one more vacancy: it seemed to me that there I would not have prospects.
But most importantly, I gained a very valuable experience in interviewing. After each interview, I already had a much better idea of what awaits me at the next one, what kind of questions I will be asked, and what answers will be expected ... Not that the same questions are asked at all interviews, but many questions are almost always asked.
And after each interview, I made myself a small list of questions in which I "swam", and then I found clear answers to them. In general, going to interviews is really useful, regardless of the results ...
Internship
Around the same time ( autumn-winter 2013 ), they wrote to me in a personal Java Rush with an offer to participate in the " Real Project ". To be honest, after they listed the technologies used in it ( Spring , Hibernate , GWT , MySQL , Maven , Git ), I was a little scared, because for the most part I heard these words out of the corner of my ear, if not for the first time . I thought that I have nothing to lose, there is time to participate, and agreed.
At first it was really HARD, but after a week or two, after reading books and articles, I got into the work of the existing code deeply enough to write something myself and make my first commit.
I was very lucky with the guys on the project. There were four of us Timur (Timur), Zhenya (Groomsh), Seryoga (SergeyKandalintsev) and me . Curated our project directly from CodeGym. Timur worked mostly on the backend, Zhenya on the frontend , Seryozha on the database , I did a little on the frontend , a little on the backend . In a couple of months, we became the first team that successfully completed the real "Real Project" , which is now used by all Javarash residents - this is the "Ratings" project ( in the new version of CodeGym, this project is no longer used). To say that The Real Project gave me a lot is to say nothing! In addition to the obvious increase in valuable knowledge, an even more important understanding came to me: Java is far from the only necessary skill, although it is fundamental. Java is the ABC of programming, but in addition to the ABC, you need to know spelling rules, grammar, syntax, build sentences correctly, have a rich vocabulary ... And in programming, you need to know and be able to use many frameworks, patterns and development tools, and also know where to look problem solving and answers to your questions. After a real project, I became interested in more advanced technologies, and to deepen my understanding of those already known to me ... My interests went beyond the "pure" Java Core. And also - a new, solid item appeared in my resume in the “Work Experience” column with a description of cool and fashionable technologies that were used in the project.
Further ordeals
The internship is over, I have started a new high-rise work season… There was not enough free time, the issue of changing profession faded into the background. Nevertheless, I devoted almost all my free time to programming: I wrote various “mini-projects”, sometimes I solved problems in Java Rush , monitored vacancies, and at the end of autumn I signed up for free courses at the DataArt IT office . The courses themselves turned out to be too general: I learned almost nothing useful there. But within the framework of these courses, students were asked to break into teams and write a "Project" . The project consisted of writing an online testing system, with user registration, a user part ( passing questionnaires ), and an admin panel (creation of questionnaires and account management ). I ended up in one of the four teams, and later it turned out that I wrote the project almost by myself. In about a month ( while working at a high-rise at the same time ), I myself wrote a quite tolerable, as it seems to me, web application based on the same technologies and patterns that we used in the Java Rush internship ( plus jsp, Spring Security, and something else ). If anyone is interested, I can throw a link to an open repository with project sources ...
Height taken!
In December, I was invited for an interview in one office. They told me that they would call when they made a decision ... “ Well, everything is as usual,” I thought then. “If they didn’t take it right away, then there’s little hope .” But a month later, after the New Year, I wrote to the HR manager of this company and asked about my fate. To my surprise, she replied that the vacancy was still open and the decision had not yet been made ...
Another month passed, and now, already at the end of January, she called me with a question whether the job search was relevant for me, to which I “at ease” replied that yes, I was looking for it for now. To which she replied that I had already found her, since I suit them!
The feeling, of course, is indescribable, when you are told this by phone, it just grows wings! To understand this, you need to experience it yourself. What do you wish in the near future! My first job was participation in the development of a large ERP project - applications , long-term construction. The application turned out to have a lot of specific nuances, so the Kiev development company needed a programmer not far from the customer - in Odessa , where I live. The application is written in GWT + ExtGWT + Spring + Hibernate + MySQL, and a bunch of auxiliary secondary libraries. It just so happened that this is exactly the stack of technologies that I studied and have some experience with. Of the minuses, I will mention that the project is old, and it uses old versions of libraries and outdated design approaches, and so obsolete that they can hardly be updated. It also turned out that it takes 3-4 years to finish the resultthe work of other programmers I will be alone! Of course, I expected that a more experienced team leader would be assigned to me, as to any junior, who is also a mentor-adviser who will guide me and review my code. But fate decreed otherwise, I was entrusted with a job designed for an experienced independent developer. “Since this is the case,” I thought, “it would be nice to immediately ask for an increase in salary.” And raised the original figure by $200 . It did not cause any indignation on their part. I will not give specific figures, I will only mention that the salary significantly exceeded my expectations. In addition, I got only one ( and not three, as usual ) month of probationary period. They issued me, as usual, through SPD (for programmers, this is common practice) .
Technologies that will be useful to you in your work: personal experience
Knowledge of databases, SQL ( MySQL ), jdbc , Hibernate , Jpa , network technologies html , jsp , servlets , xml , Tomcat is highly desirable, even perhaps REQUIRED . Knowledge of the main JavaSE patterns ( the so-called GOF patterns ) is required , as well as a HUGE plus would be at least a superficial knowledge of Spring , SpringMVC , the Maven project builder , log4j logging, unit testing JUnit . You need to be able to work with version control systems, Git for example. Sometimes they ask or give test tasks on web services ( SOAP, REST ). Along with all this, knowledge of Java core should be, if not flawless, then at least very confident.
First Impressions
After the first two weeks, I began to delve into the code, and now I know that everything will work out ...
I want to immediately note that working as a programmer is still not a resort, it is primarily a job that you need to get up in the morning and return in the evening. But this work is much better than many others. It has both interest, and money, and prospects. And it is especially pleasant when you were able to achieve this yourself, with your mind, work and perseverance. I was able to change my life, that in many ways you are the master of your own destiny.
The only thing I'm afraid of is that laziness will prevail over me. That having achieved a certain result, I will become lazy and stop growing in a professional sense. But still, I really hope that this does not happen. Once again I want to thank the creators of this wonderful resource! And to you, Javarashian, I want to wish perseverance and patience on the path you have chosen, as grandfather Lenin said: “Comrades, you go with a great dog!” =) and still not indulge your own laziness, and most importantly "NEVER GIVE UP". The road will be mastered by the walking one!
Afterword: two years later...
…decided to write a sequel to my Success Story. There are three reasons for this:
I was asked by the administration =);
I still believe that this resource played a key role in my "entering IT";
I still believe that motivation is also one of the key factors in this business, and one of the best motivators is the success stories of real people who were in exactly the same situation as you, Javarash. For I know from my own experience that at times their hands simply drop... and many no longer raise their hands. It's a really hard road, but it's worth it!
So here are my answers to the questions: How did your life change after you got a new job and how did you feel at that moment? Well, of course, it has changed ... First of all, the eternal balance of “time-money” has changed. There was noticeably more money, much less time ... Finally, it began to be enough for “daily bread”, but it’s not yet possible to save for a “rainy day”J. Although, I am sure, if you strain a little, you will be able to save $200-500 a month (this despite the fact that I work alone in a family of 4, my wife has the opportunity to calmly take care of children). Stability, confidence in the future, or at least some illusion of them appeared ... Describe your work. What do you do, what do you study, how are the processes of interaction with the team going? I am currently working for a second company, Electric Cloud. This is an American company, the product is not easy - a DevOps tool for Continious Integration / Continious Delivery, something like Jenkins, only much larger, and a purely commercial product. In addition, it is already quite ancient, full of legacy code (outdated code, ed. note), which needs to be maintained, bugs fixed, and sometimes new features written. In a word, the zoo of technologies is such that mom do not cry! You have to deal to a greater or lesser extent with Java8, GWT, JS, PHP, Perl, HTML, CSS, Spring, Hibernate, JUnit, Mockito, Maven, Perforce, and these are just the main ones ... For the first few months I simply saw clearly, then I got used to it. Working conditions are standard. Five days a week, 18 working days a year - vacation (plus all public holidays). The schedule is largely free. If you wish, you can work from home. However, I prefer the office, where the atmosphere is more working. Most often I work from 12 to 19-20 hours. We have scrum updates every day.Scrum is an agile software development methodology, approx. ed.), once or twice a week - rallies in the evenings with our American team leader. What heights in your career have you already managed to achieve and what other mountains are you planning to roll? From time to time I look at good vacancies in offices that interest me. Very rarely, but still happens, I go to interviews. I have already realized that it is easier to find a place with a good salary than a place with a good project. And to do both, it takes a lot of effort. And yet, I increasingly realize that this profession is not by chance, but deserved it with my work and perseverance, although some degree of luck, especially at first, must certainly take place, and one more thing: I very much doubt that I will change it . By February, I will have two years of commercial development experience. If you evaluate my level according to generally accepted concepts, it seems to me that this is something like Strong Junior or Regular Middle. However, this assessment is very subjective, except that I am sure that I am not a Senior yet. Any parting words for those who are still at the beginning (or middle) of the path? I sincerely wish everyone who believes in their strength to achieve their goal, and I hope my example will contribute to this. I repeat: this is not an easy path, no matter what anyone tells you, and very few of those who start will achieve their goal. But a lot more people can do it! It’s just that the majority lacks something in the middle of the path: motivation, desire, perseverance, faith in themselves and their strengths. Many come up with sophisticated excuses and the goals are no longer achieved ... So believe in yourself, don't give up halfway (small breaks certainly don't count =)), and you will succeed! As the ancient Greeks said, "It is not the gods who burn the pots." “Programmers are not born”, remember this (CodeGym motto, approx. ed.)? And finally - one more piece of advice: go through the INTERVIEW! This is the most direct road. Once I heard the phrase at an IT event: “I have never met a person who went to 20 interviews and was not taken anywhere.” How many interviews have you been to? I know that you can answer me:
I'm not ready yet, I need to learn more ...
Well, no one is calling me...
So: these are all rotten excuses too! I got my first job ($1100 salary) after level 21! True, at that time I already had a little experience in GWT, Hibernate and Spring, gleaned from the CodeGym internship. But at the interview they didn’t ask about this, almost all the questions were about Java Core and a little SQL. So do not be afraid, look for vacancies, go to interviews! Sign up for LinkedIn, Gina, job sites, wherever you can! Keep track of the latest vacancies, respond to them! “Knock and they will open for you”, flood all the IT offices in your city with letters with your resume, and you won’t have to wait long for an invitation to an interview. Plenty of options! So the shortest course of action is:
Finished 20-30 levels of CodeGym, plus learned some SQL, JDBC. if there are also the basics of Spring and Hibernate, then you are generally in chocolate.
I dashed off a resume using examples, registered on specialized sites, posted it, then bombarded all IT offices with spam with my resume. Believe me, you will not be left without feedback, many will simply unsubscribe that they will have you in mind, and someone will definitely invite you for an interview.
Every interview, even if it fails completely, brings you closer to your goal! For each next you will feel more prepared and confident. And 80% of the questions are asked almost everywhere by the same questions.
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