Hello everyone. I will build my success story more in terms of advice and recommendations and briefly describe my path. I write mainly for those who decided to start from scratch. Many points will be described from my point of view and I do not claim to be the ultimate truth. Part 1. “My BEC” 37 years old, a motorist by training, worked as a teacher at the university. I didn't know programming at all. There was no computer science at school at all; at the university they studied Basic and Excel, but that was 16 years ago. Part 2. “Is it worth it?” First, to become a programmer from scratch, you need to go through pain, despair and suffering. If everything in your life is relatively good and smooth, are you ready for this? I’m not talking about those who have programming as a hobby or who are programmers by education. I'm talking about those who actually decided from scratch. Second, every year it becomes more difficult to enter IT. It’s more difficult not in the sense of learning this skill, it’s more difficult in the sense of finding a first job, but more on that later. Third, let’s say something good, programmers are an elite caste, specialists are valued, they are hunted, and as a result, salaries, bonuses and attitudes. Fourth, this is a job for those who like to invent something, look for simple and creative solutions, and solve puzzles. Fifth, you will have to study throughout your working life; there will be little routine work. When my current job was no longer satisfactory in many respects, I decided to change my job, or rather my profession. Having assessed the labor market, I couldn’t find anything better than becoming a programmer. Part 3. “Where to start” First, I decided to try to see if it would work, if it would suit me. After consultations with programmers, I started learning Python. I took a free course on one educational platform, I liked it. I strongly recommend that those starting from scratch do not jump straight into Java. Even after Python, Java seemed like crap to me. After Python, I took a free course on SQL and an introductory course on Java. Why didn't I stay with Python? At the same time, I monitored the labor market. IMHO, it is more difficult to find a job in it, although at first I liked Python more. Part 4. “The learning process” After the introductory free courses, I came to JavaRush. Why JavaRush? The presentation of material is much better than that of competitors. There are no strict boundaries or deadlines. Low price. I completed 36 levels in three months. I paid monthly and didn’t take long subscriptions. Compared to offers from other sites, paying 100-200 for 6 months can be said to be for nothing. Here are my recommendations. The learning process does not need to be stretched out over years. Java itself is approximately 20-30% of the knowledge that an employer needs for a June vacancy. If you study 20-30% for several years, then 100% - 10 years? I abandoned all my hobbies and recreation except sleep, and devoted 30-40 hours a week to studying. Find a friend/relative who will support and encourage you. Over the course of 3 months, I had several crises - when I simply could not understand some topic. Without good motivation and support, it is difficult to continue further education. After completing 35 levels, I somehow completed a test assignment for an internship from JavaRush. At the same time, I began to actively look for work, more about this in the next part. Next was an internship with JavaRush, which I quit because... got an internship at the company. During my internships, I delved deeper into Spring and other relevant technologies. Part 5. “Job Search” I posted my resume on the main sites after studying the basics of Python, Java and SQL. But it did not attract any attention from employers. When I completed JavaRush, I completed a couple of standard projects and posted them on GitHub. After that, I finalized my resume, inserted a link to GitHub, and listed a number of technologies used. And he began an active job search. Finding a job is like a second job; it takes a lot of time. It was during this period that I studied first at the JavaRush internship, then at an internship at an IT company. Every day I looked through new vacancies on hh and Hubr and responded to all the suitable ones. I subscribed to several telegram channels with vacancies. The most vacancies (including for beginners) are on hh and Hubr. On other sites (superJob, farpost, rabota.ru, etc.) either the same vacancies or very few and rarely are published. About LinckedIn, it’s a good platform, I created a profile there, but they are looking for middle/senior level specialists. Most often, even before the interview, they ask you to complete a test task. I’ve made it a rule that if I can’t complete a test task in 2-3 days, then I don’t waste any more time on it, because... 2-3 test tasks were sent per week. Interviews usually take place in two stages. The first interview with a recruiter is an interview for adequacy and basic skills. The second interview with a technical specialist, where they teach you both Java and everything possible. There were exceptions when, at the first interview, the recruiter asked me to write a Java program or SQL query in a notepad. In almost all cases when I was called for the first interview, I was invited for the second. Several times it happened that the test task was given after the first interview. On average, I had 2-4 interviews and completed 2 test assignments per week. This lasted 4 months. During these 4 months, I simultaneously completed a JavaRush internship for 1.5 months, and after 1 month an internship at an IT company. The announced internship at an IT company, on which I had pinned a lot of hopes, was interrupted on the company’s initiative and all the interns were dispersed. Desperate, I already responded to almost all vacancies, not just Java. Part 6. “Victory” And then it happened. Job vacancy: Backend developer on NodeJS required. They invited me to an interview, which was to take place in 4 days. During these 4 days, I learned what I could about NodeJS, “set up a server” on NodeJS using videos on YouTube, and wrote a telegram bot in NodeJS. Passed the first interview. They gave me a test task, completed it in two days, and sent it. Called for a second interview I was immediately offered a job...in a small company that produces its own product, in a word, StartUp. ******VICTORY***** From that moment my real development as a programmer began. Before that, I programmed in my free time from work and other matters. Now I program at work, often after work, and sometimes before it. I wrote on NodeJS for two weeks (or rather, I tried to write). Then they gave me a separate project, which I started writing in Java. Then I was given the opportunity to write a front-end in VueJS, so I also learned JavaScript, or rather, I began to learn it. Those. Now I'm already a Fullstack developer. Part 7. “Results” In my opinion, the most important thing is to find your first job. This is such a turning point after which life changes. That's it, you can build a career further if you don't be stupid. I met many guys who set themselves the goal of entering IT, but people despaired and gave up, gave up everything or put it off for later. I wish you not to give up and bring everything to a victorious end. Answers to frequently asked questions. Does age affect your job search? The employer primarily cares about experience and knowledge. Of course, there are vacancies where they write “graduate of the last three years in the specialty ...”, but these are employers looking for cheap young labor and there are not many of them. Also, the employer does not care what you worked before programming. Do you need English and math? If you don’t know English at all, it will be more difficult, since a lot of things are in English and you will have to learn it. It’s the same with mathematics, if you can’t subtract 367 from 1000 in your head and reach for a calculator, then there will be problems in writing business logic. I tried not to write memoirs, keep everything short and to the point. I am ready to answer any questions and cover points of interest in more detail.
From that moment my real development as a programmer began. Before that, I programmed in my free time from work and other matters. Now I program at work, often after work, and sometimes before it. I wrote on NodeJS for two weeks (or rather, I tried to write). Then they gave me a separate project, which I started writing in Java. Then I was given the opportunity to write a front-end in VueJS, so I also learned JavaScript, or rather, I began to learn it. Those. Now I'm already a Fullstack developer. Part 7. “Results” In my opinion, the most important thing is to find your first job. This is such a turning point after which life changes. That's it, you can build a career further if you don't be stupid. I met many guys who set themselves the goal of entering IT, but people despaired and gave up, gave up everything or put it off for later. I wish you not to give up and bring everything to a victorious end. Answers to frequently asked questions. Does age affect your job search? The employer primarily cares about experience and knowledge. Of course, there are vacancies where they write “graduate of the last three years in the specialty ...”, but these are employers looking for cheap young labor and there are not many of them. Also, the employer does not care what you worked before programming. Do you need English and math? If you don’t know English at all, it will be more difficult, since a lot of things are in English and you will have to learn it. It’s the same with mathematics, if you can’t subtract 367 from 1000 in your head and reach for a calculator, then there will be problems in writing business logic. I tried not to write memoirs, keep everything short and to the point. I am ready to answer any questions and cover points of interest in more detail.
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