Getting into Tech in 2024
In this article, I go over the things I've covered on getting into tech in 2024 with my mentees over the past few month.
Getting into the Tech industry in 2024 feels different.
In previous years it was seemingly easy to get out of university or do a bootcamp and move into tech.
Now it feels like a mountain you need to climb.
Companies are tightening their belts, they’re cutting out entry-level positions and there’s a lot of candidates to choose from.
And you have to be the one to stand out.
In this article, we talk about all about expectations and how to start navigating the industry. I also have a special announcement about my mentorship programme, so be sure to read on!
Expectation setting!
I think there’s the misconception that getting into tech will suddenly get you that killer 6 figure salary.
They sell you:
That learning how to code is easy🙄
That you can do it in twelve-sixteen weeks🏃♀️
That you can earn a multi-six figure revenue shortly after🤑
The reality is:
That learning how to code takes time and dedication🙏
That learning how to be proficient in it can take years🕰️
That many never get to that multi-six figure revenue💰
That many locations pay significantly lower🌍
Basically, it’s not the quick money pot that many claim it to be.
Sure, if you are naturally brilliant at it, you can go far, quickly…
But for the majority of us, progress takes time.
Basically, what I’m saying is, going into this industry shouldn’t just be for the money, it should be because you like it…
Now, if you’ve got this far and you’re saying:
Jade, I think being a software engineer is definitely the right thing for me, what is it that I need to be aware of going forward?
Well, you’ve come to the right place, keep on reading because this one’s for you!
❌The curse of CV refinement…
One thing that I’ve seen people fall into the trap of is the need to refine and refine their CV.
Refining your CV is the easy part.
In truth, if you don’t have the evidence to back up your CV, it really doesn’t matter how many ways you write it.
When you see people share the ‘CV Template’ that got them into Microsoft, Google or Meta, is it the template, or is it the fact they went to a Ivy League university or had good projects that they could show their direct impact on?
That’s what’s hard, building up the evidence.
Learning is hard.
And with learning, comes failure, and with failure comes rejection, and that can really hurt you if you aren’t familiar with it.
But it’s the only way you’re going to be able to become a better developer.
Also, I know really sucks that entry-level isn’t entry-level and that you have to go above on beyond. All I can do is help you navigate the market in the current conditions and advocate for fairer processes going forward.
Build small projects, lots of them
One of the best ways to start learning more, fast, is to build real world applications.
By yourself.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I think many bootcamps are great for teaching you how to work well as a team and build group projects.
But when you come out of them, you can often find that there’s a varying level of skill because some people have built lots of the project, whereas others have only built small parts of it.
And that’s just because everyone has a different baseline, and so it can be hard to go at everyone’s pace in such a small amount of time.
What can you do thought? Start by learning how to build things yourself.
I really recommend taking a look at the various Coding Challenges by John Crickett.
He provides a variety of coding challenges that allow you to build small projects at a time but increase your skill in different areas.
Stick to a language of your choice, and get good at it.
🐘The elephant in the room
I think this next is the thing that most of my mentees have dreaded most.
Data structure and algorithms.
Many of them come out of their bootcamps not knowing anything about it and feeling super overwhelmed when they’ve had an assessment that has involved it, they’ve not passed it.
Don’t panic!
The most common platform for this is LeetCode, and I think a lot of people don’t get on with it because they don’t see it being applied to real world problems.
But think about it this way, it’s still problem solving, and all problem solving can be made fun… Right?
I think the thing that makes people hate it and want to not try at all is because they try running before they can walk. They try to do hard challenges, before they even understand the data structures and how to work with them effectively.
In fact, for most software engineering roles, you probably don’t need to know the harder ones, understanding common data structures and algorithms are sufficient.
For entry level roles, I would focus on them in this order:
Big O Notation/Time Complexity/Space Complexity
Arrays
Hashmaps
Queues
Stacks
LinkedList
And then once I’m comfortable with this then and only then would I focus on understanding more complex data structures or algorithms.
If you try doing the more complex ones first, you’re probably going to overwhelm yourself.
I really recommend looking at NeetCode’s Playlists for more on this, he provides great visuals and informative videos on many of the common data structure and algorithm problems and explains his approach for them.
Getting started with the easy playlist is a great start!
Remember, take it one day at a time and don’t try to learn it all in one go.
I would limit yourself to 30 minutes maximum a day trying to solve one problem.
If you can’t solve it, look at the editorial and video explanation, try to follow along by writing it in your own terms and then put it down and try again tomorrow.
Be patient!💡
Sometimes it can feel like you’re doing all the right steps.
There’s nothing you can do other than to carry on what you’re doing.
Don’t give up.
This is when you need to keep consistent.
Story time…
My mentee had been looking for a role for two years…
We started working together end of December/early January…
He was ready to get a role by mid February…
It took him another 6-8 weeks until after he was ready to get an offer of his dreams!
The bottom line is you can’t predict when companies are going to get back to you with availability for interviews and offers.
These are all variables you cannot control.
But what can you control?
Well, you can:
Continue to search and apply for positions🔎
Continue to practice and refine your skills so when the interviews come you are ready for them🧠
Learn from any past interviews to do better next time💼
Attend as many networking events as possible, introduce yourself to as many people as possible, make people root for YOU!💻🤝🌐
You have got this!💪
Let’s talk mentorship program…
I’m excited to announce I have 3 FREE SPACES on my mentorship program!
In this program, we will have weekly 45 minute 1:1’s where we will:
Assess your baseline, to understand how you compare to other candidates in the market and what we need you to focus on.
Set actionable tasks week on week for you to complete depending on what areas we need you to work on.
Use the sessions for CV reviews, pair programming, mock interviews, etc to help get you to where you need to be.
This will continue until you secure your first role (failure to turn up or complete tasks consistently will make you lose your space also!)
To apply, please fill in the form here! Applications will close on Tuesday 16th April 2024.
This is your chance to show why it is you want to work with me and how you feel you can benefit from my help, make it count!
And that’s all from me!
I hope you liked this article, if you did, please give it a like and a restack and be sure to check out my video that goes into more detail:
Articles I liked this week:
Glad you covered the topic directly without any cushion, Jade.
Getting over the hard parts is the determining factor in success yet less talked about. Great insights there, for all folks getting influenced by hypes, this is a post you’d want to read!
Your candor is so refreshing and I think this really helps set expectations of the current market. You are such an excellent resource, Jade. Way to go! 🙌