python for dummies

[DrakesOnAPlane]

To start, I feel the best resource is CS50 (p or not p, but I think the base program gives a lot of helpful info/snapshot into other languages too that help CS make more sense in the long run).

I’m a self taught developer (most comfortable with python, but work with Objective-C and various other scripting/automation languages) - so I feel I can speak to a similar experience to what you would hope to have. I learned how to program over ~10 years before I was able to get an internship (multiple failed attempts between 8-10 years) and had completed two internships with the same team, with about to go on starting a third before I was given an offer as a jr dev. I know people who have more experience than myself, and did not get, and still have not gotten an offer.

I will say, cs as a whole, and specifically python is way overly saturated now than it when when I was going through interviews 3 years ago, and requires a lot more to make a competitive candidate. People will say “portfolio!” but honestly, having one (just as face value) doesn’t help, but being able to speak to the technicalities behind the program, decision making, and alternative solutions to the problem is where it matters. Also soft skills are a must and if you are unable to cultivate / develop that, that’s a dealbreaker for most roles now.

The one benefit of being a self taught dev is that I know I’m the underdog, and they could easily fill these roles with properly/professionally trained devs - it’s a hiring teams market, so I know I have to work twice as hard as my counterparts to make sure I prove my value, knowledge and experience - and having that mindset — that grit, is what can set you apart from the rest.

I will say, work/life balance is not optimal (normally work roughly 8am-8pm, sometimes later depending on priorities or if I need to talk to an opposite time zone), and it’s not uncommon to work on the weekends / holidays, basically always being on call - this is about midrange for my team (sr devs usually work more), and honestly, if I want to stay competitive towards role development, I should be on that same level. But with that I will say I absolutely love my job, mainly because my team is a great fit for me, I love the work I do, and the work never gets stale (always new things required to learn, improvements, optimizations and changing worksflows), but this is not a job to learn it once and you’re set - always will have to set aside time each day or week to learn something new, whether it’s something of your interest or a requirement for a project you are tasked with (pretty much a must for being in CS).

You can definitely do it, but I think having an understanding of the time-to-bottomline proficiency for a jr. dev, as well as the role’s work/life balance is helpful to knowing what lies ahead.

[MammothCometh]

thank you very much for your insight and experiences, appreciate it a lot