After freelancing part-time as a Wordpress implementer (cos I never got into the PHP code), I decided to learn to code and switch careers from Public Health to Software Engineering. I enrolled in 6-month-long, 35hours/week online bootcamp when my daughter was just 4 months old. Six months after bootcamp, I landed my first full-time role.
I'm here to advise, support and cheer on anyone with a non-traditional background, or non-typical profile, who dreams of being a professional programmer. Ask away!
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What was the hardest part?
What was the best part?
Thanks for your questions Erik :)
Hardest Part: The Job Search. I actually enjoyed bootcamp (even though it was a struggle at times, with sleep deprivation and constant interruptions from my baby).
But the job search was a real test of my belief that I was able and ready to work as a programmer. Each rejection - be it after a coding test, phone screen, or onsite interview - was a blow to my sense of competency.
What kept me going was (1) the unrelenting encouragement of my mentor from bootcamp - he had absolute faith that I was good enough (2) the fact that I had come so far and invested so much energy in my learning; I wasnt about to let it go to waste lol.
Best Part: Being mentored during bootcamp. My mentor was INCREDIBLE! He's the person I credit most for my success so far. He absolutely believed in my abilities and programming aptitude, even when I felt so dumb. He made time for me beyond what the bootcamp required, just to pair with me more, and explain things more. My experience with him is what spurs me on to mentor and encourage other future programmers.
How did you balance out being with your child and learning?
Great question Christian! Well early on, I prioritized training her to sleep longer stretches at night. During the day, I nursed her frequently to fill her tank lol. She would sleep from 8pm until 11pm or 12am, which is when I would do more intensive, concentrated coding. She'd wake for a feed, after which I'd go to bed during her second night stretch.
During the day, I'd focus more on tutorial videos, or working on short coding challenges (like on LeetCode or CodeWars), which are tasks that frequent interruptions from my baby wouldn't be so impactful.
One day a week, I'd do NOTHING coding-related, to rest my mind.
Early on, I'd set time-based goals but would feel very defeated if my baby was especially needful of me that day. So I switched to setting small task-based goals (like: configure one method in a class), which left me feeling accomplished even on very busy days.
I must say that a major advantage I had was not needing to work; my spouse supported our family during my learning.
What advice would you give to a future programmer parent?
Hi Andy! I write about this in this post.
Basically, it comes down to:
(1) knowing that it will probably take longer than you anticipate
(2) having motivation beyond getting a higher salary
(3) leveraging as much of your professional network as possible
(4) setting small task-based goals, not time-based (which can leave you feeling defeated if you didnt code much cos the kids needed you more than usual)
What is the name of the boot camp?
Hello Mustafa! The bootcamp was called The Firehose Project - but they have been acquired by Trilogy Education, so they're no longer taking students unfortunately. They offer their program through universities now; I believe UC Berkley is one of them.
As a soon to be graduate in software engineering. What advice can you give for finding the first job.
Hi Mrunal! If you had asked me this question 2 months ago, my answer would've been different. But 6 weeks at my new job has taught me one of the most important and underrated skills as a developer: being able to read, understand and work with code that someone else has written.
So my top advice for new software eng grads is get involved in an opensource project (or volunteer as a developer for a local nonprofit or organization).
Algorithm challenges are important, yes, and whiteboarding and all that. BUT opensource contributions PROVE that you are able to assimilate yourself into an existing dev environment and work well with the team behind that project.
I'm not sure what languages you know, but if Ruby is one of them, absolutely join the DEVCommunity opensource project. I found their app a breeze to set up on my local machine, and their support and encouragement are unparalleled.
My second piece of advice would be to make sure that your finished projects on GitHub are actually finished and polished. In-progress projects should be indicated as such. Also write a detailed README.md for each github project. Finally make sure your online professional profiles (portfolio site, LinkedIn, etc) are detailed and polished (good grammar, etc), so that you make the best first impression on people.
Good luck on your job hunt! Let me know how else I can help!
You rock!
Why, thank you! :)
Go for it , opportunities are not common in today's competitive tech market!
Hello! Please I need source code of a registration and login system
There are plenty of those around. Just Google it...this isn't the right place to ask
What kind of obstacles did you face and how did you overcome them? If gender was one of them, what advice could you give me as I am a 16 year old girl looking to go into software engineering.
Hi Danielle!
My greatest obstacles were in relation to balancing family and learning and/or applying to jobs. Thankfully I had a few incredible friends who were willing to take PTO from work to watch my children while I went for an onsite interview, for example. Those sort of friends are lifetime-keepers :D
Genderwise, I didn't really experience overt bias or discrimination; it's possible there were covert attempts made against me, but I wasn't cognizant of those. In a 6-month period, I applied to dozens of jobs (I wish I kept accurate count, sorry!), about 40% of those applications turned into phone screens and/or coding tests, and I ended up having 3 onsite interviews (out of which I landed my current job). So let's assume I applied for 36 jobs; this means my onsite interview rate was ~8%.
At 16, I APPLAUD you for being so clear about what you want to do with your career! You literally have your entire life ahead of you. My advice would be: Don't lock yourself down too much into just a few tech stacks. Please explore, browse and familiarize yourself with all that's out there. Commit to always doing excellent work - no matter how small the project - and you'll stand out spectacularly from your peers. Proud of you mama - keep getting it! :D
Hello Amana, Fazli Mola Jan here. I am Software Engineer having 3 years experience in Android App Development. I did some good projects but recently I have resigned from a job and I didn't want to apply for new job. I don't know why? So any good advice for me that can motivate me to take start again. I want to do new job but I don't want to start, again don't know why?
Thanks for your kind advice in advance.
Hi Fazli! My first question would be: What about your Android App dev job took your motivation away?
Was it the actual work - the coding?
Was it the salary level or benefits package?
Was it the work environment - perhaps your teammates or managers?
Was it the commute or the time away from home?
I assume that before you landed the Android dev job, you were very motivated to get the job right? So in my mind, there is something about your work experience that has cooled your passion.
I think when you get the the roots of why, you will know what needs to change at your next position, and maybe you'll get excited about finding a job that better fits your needs. Good luck my friend!
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