DEV Community

Cover image for 6 Things Every Software Engineer Should Know to Standout

6 Things Every Software Engineer Should Know to Standout

Jr. Dev 👨🏾‍💻 on July 14, 2020

1. Data Structures & Algorithms Why? Data structures and algorithms are the backbone of computer science. An algorithm re...
Collapse
 
alexandrudanpop profile image
Alexandru-Dan Pop

While it's very nice to have a basic understanding of all the things above, you don't need to be an expert in all of them.

It depends on the businesses you are working for and what are the skills they need to solve their problems.

For example: You won't add much value to a company that builds Web Applications if you have deep knowledge of compilers and all of the above. You will need specialized knowledge of how the Web works and you might need to know a Web framework.

Collapse
 
willparr profile image
willparr

Yeah I definitely agree with this. I think that compiler design isn't a must know for all software engineers. For most jobs, I would argue that software architecture is more applicable than compiler design.

Collapse
 
alexandrudanpop profile image
Alexandru-Dan Pop

Architecture skills, soft skills, learning to explain complex things in a simple way to stackeholders, those will make a big difference IMHO.

Thread Thread
 
willparr profile image
willparr

Yes. Big ups on the explaining complex things to stakeholders. Without that, the whole development process falls apart. Great communication will definitely make you stand out from other engineers.

Collapse
 
john2220 profile image
John Raptis

Depending the type of work you do as an engineer you need to know what is required.

You don't NEED to know everything in the list but you WILL have a better understanding of the big picture, even if it's not directly relatable to your day to day job.

Thanks for sharing.

Collapse
 
dnlbrnr profile image
Daniel Berner

Good list; knowledge of any or all of these topics will only make you a better engineer, for sure. Knowledge is power!

Collapse
 
mxldevs profile image
MxL Devs

I probably won't be going anywhere near compiler stuff anytime soon. I'm already having hard enough time just getting users and making money on my apps to worry about optimizing for scale.

Collapse
 
jonstrayer profile image
Jon Strayer

You just described an average computer science undergrad degree.

Collapse
 
izar_t profile image
Izar "Infosec Curmudgeon" Tarandach

What about at least the principles of security?

Collapse
 
therise3107 profile image
Lalit Yadav • Edited

Good post :) +10 up votes if I could :), Robert book are absolute gem.

Collapse
 
z2lai profile image
z2lai

Excellent list of resources, and no affiliate links? I'm impressed!