SO YOU WANT TO BE A WEB DEVELOPER.

It’s 2024, and the tech ecosystem is even more vast than ever, with different fields emerging almost yearly.
From AI engineering to UI/UX writing, one that has been around for a while and is still very well in demand is WEB DEVELOPMENT/WEBSITE DEVELOPMENT.
And so arises the infamous question, ‘How can I become a web developer?’.

To become anything, you need lots of knowledge, and web development, although broad, can be easily understood.

WHAT IS WEB DEVELOPMENT?

Web development is creating, building and maintaining websites/web applications. It is divided into two major categories:

1. Front-end web development

2. Back-end web development

Front-end Development

Generally, front-end development is mainly concerned with, but is not limited to, everything a user can see on a website. Developing the layout, design and complex interactions between the elements of a website—is also called client-side development. Front-end developers work closely with the design team to deliver great User interfaces.

Technical skills/roadmap:

• HTML

• CSS

• JavaScript

• React/Vue/Angular

• Git and GitHub

Back-end Development

Back-end development, on the other hand, handles the server-side-software, which includes Creating/interacting with APIs(Application Programming Interface), databases, architectures and more.
It is also called server-side development.

Technical skills/roadmap:

• NodeJs/Python/PHP/Java/Ruby
• SQL
• AWS/MongoDB

Full-stack development is the category that combines both front-end and back-end development. A full-stack developer can create a fully functioning website by effectively using the technologies and languages required to develop the front-end and back-end of a web application.

FRONT-END VS BACK-END VS FULL-STACK: WHICH ONE?

Choosing between front-end and back-end development is generally relative to your goals or plans. There are, however, a few pointers to help make informed decisions:

1. Design vs Logic: People who love to engage with design elements—colours and fonts are generally encouraged to go for Front-end Development, while those who prefer to write algorithms, logic, and code architectures are typically advised to go for back-end development.

This is not to say front-end developers don't write algorithms or logic, but those with a knack for visual exploration will most likely prefer the stack.

1. Examples from professionals: Another way to choose the stack to go for is to learn from people who are already professionals in any of these stacks. An easy way to do this is to go to YouTube and search “A day in the life of a front-end or back-end developer”.

This will give a quick insight into what to expect; seeing what the future will look like and its alignment with one’s goals or plans.

1. Pay/Salary: One major factor to consider before choosing is checking out the salary range associated with that stack in the job market.

The next step is figuring out where to learn and how to learn.

It is important to note that some of these sources will require a bit of funds to access, so feel free to do further research.
They include:

• Online course platforms: Coursera, Udemy, Meta, WS3 schools etc.
• Youtube Tutorials: FreeCodeCamp, Brad Traversy, Netninja, etc.
• Official Documentations: MDN, Python docs, etc.
• Bootcamps.
• Mobile Apps: WS3 schools

Best Learning Practices

• Consistency and commitment.
• Embrace difficulty
• Join an online learning community for accountability
• Document your learnings on your social media accounts, e.g. LinkedIn, X…
• Build lots of projects.
• Volunteer to work for free.
• Learn about “imposter syndrome” and how to overcome it.

Some Learning Resources(ebooks):

• The magic of CSS
• DOM Enlightenment
• Eloquent Javascript
• Pro Git Book
• SQLZap
• React

In conclusion, Web development is more than just building websites; it’s about solving problems. With determination, focus and a healthy support system, you, too, can be a web developer.