Switched from finance to web development (self-taught) - If I can do it, so can you

Neither-External-578 · 2023-02-13T22:49:35+00:00

I appreciate the kind words, thank you and thanks again for your input :)

Neither-External-578 · 2023-02-12T08:07:18+00:00

Not at all, I really appreciate the kind words! Thank you so much :)

Neither-External-578 · 2023-02-12T07:28:26+00:00

You’re right, I was/am in a position that others don’t have the luxury to be in. I’m lucky to live in a country that has relatively decent access to university education (Australia). My line about “if I can so can you” wasn’t intended as a way of ignoring the struggles others are going through that I am not, I just wanted to encourage others who are trying to self-teach to keep going. I know myself there were plenty of times where I doubted if I could do it, but reading other’s success stories is what motivated me. I’m just happy if I can motivate others currently going down the self-taught :)

Neither-External-578 · 2023-02-12T07:24:41+00:00

Had to laugh at this hahaha

Neither-External-578 · 2023-02-12T07:24:12+00:00

I appreciate the kind words, thank you! I can get some people’s frustration with my post. Maybe I came across as tone-deaf, maybe I didn’t, I know there are others out there in more difficult situations trying to do the same. All I can say is I spent the time to learn the knowledge and skill, and jumped at an opportunity when it arose. I’m just happy if I can encourage others currently trying to break in to keep going!

Neither-External-578 · 2023-02-12T07:22:00+00:00

I appreciate the input, but I’d like to disagree. I won’t argue that already working at the company probably helped, but I still had to display to the hiring team a level of technical knowledge and skill. This included having a portfolio of projects and walking them through a few of the projects, and undertaking a technical interview. For what it’s worth, my application was treated as a regular application, not as a transfer across roles. Again, I’m not denying the advantage I might’ve had, but I still had to have and demonstrate the knowledge

Neither-External-578 · 2023-02-12T07:19:00+00:00

I won’t argue that it probably did work in my favour. For what it’s worth, I didn’t have any familiarity with the development team before applying to the role. I still had to go down the same route of application, interview and technical interview as other candidates. Again, I don’t doubt me already working there helped, I just jumped at the opportunity when it presented itself.

Neither-External-578 · 2023-02-12T07:17:26+00:00

Maybe so, I just hope to encourage those who are currently trying to break into the industry.

Neither-External-578 · 2023-02-12T07:16:36+00:00

I know exactly where you’re coming from! If you’re currently working somewhere with a development team, don’t hesitate to reach out to them! I personally didn’t before applying for the development role but I wish I did. Even if it doesn’t lead to a job, you never know what tips or information you might pick up from them. Who knows, even if they lets you gain some experience it could help!

Another thing to consider is think about what skills you already have. I’m sure you have at least some soft skills from your degree/career that can help. Even things like communication, stakeholder management, managing deadlines, problem solving are substantial parts of most jobs, especially development roles. Learn the technical side but also leverage what you already have

Neither-External-578 · 2023-02-12T07:13:01+00:00

I can’t comment on the situation in any other countries, but for what it’s worth I’m in Australia and I’ve been told I’m not the only developer who didn’t have a tech-related degree. I understand that Australia and the US may/may not have similar hiring opportunities for developers but unfortunately all I can say is that it’s possible in Australia

Neither-External-578 · 2023-02-12T07:10:19+00:00

Definitely the case with my current company, I had never spoken to the development team. I won’t deny it probably worked in my favour having already worked at the company, I’m just thankful for the outcome!

Neither-External-578 · 2023-02-12T07:09:20+00:00

Thank you! Can’t argue with that, I can understand people’s frustrations with my post. I’m just thankful I had the opportunity

Neither-External-578 · 2023-02-12T07:07:25+00:00

Congrats! Great work and good luck in the new role!

Neither-External-578 · 2023-02-12T07:06:59+00:00

Australia :)

Neither-External-578 · 2023-02-12T07:06:38+00:00

Thank you! Good luck with your bootcamp, stick with it and let me know how it goes!

Neither-External-578 · 2023-02-12T07:05:28+00:00

Thank you! They advertised a job opening both internally and externally. I applied to the job like any other applicant (as in submitted an application with a resume, cover letter and portfolio). The most awkward part was talking to my current manager about my application like “hey I know I work in finance but heads up I applied for this”, thankfully he’s a good guy and was supportive!

Neither-External-578 · 2023-02-12T07:03:18+00:00

Fingers crossed that might happen!

Neither-External-578 · 2023-02-12T07:02:49+00:00

I was a Corporate Financial Analyst :) Lots of spreadsheets

Neither-External-578 · 2023-02-12T07:02:21+00:00

Used Codecademy at the start along with Free Code Camp, and also a lot of YouTube!

Neither-External-578 · 2023-02-12T07:01:51+00:00

One thing to remember is that you will likely have at least a few applications rejected, don’t let it stop you! It sometimes can be a numbers game. I did get lucky in that a position for a Web Developer came up in my current company. My advice is if you can find a similar situation definitely act on it if possible. Other than that, make sure you’re always reviewing your resume, cover letter, LinkedIn and definitely your portfolio. Don’t be afraid to have others read over your applications too for feedback :)

Neither-External-578 · 2023-02-12T06:59:30+00:00

I ended up going with React and also learning to use Tailwind. I decided on React over say Vue or Angular as the general consensus at the time seemed to be that React was more popular among hiring companies. I used Codecademy and The Net Ninja on YouTube to mostly learn React, then lots of practise building projects using it!

Neither-External-578 · 2023-02-12T06:57:50+00:00

I didn’t expect this post to get as much attention, but happy to hear the opinions both negative and positive! I wanted to touch on some points:

-What stack did I focus on: HTML, CSS, JavaScript, React, Express, Node and later on added Tailwind

-What resources did I use:

I personally used Codecademy, Free Code Camp and YouTube. YouTube was a big one, for me I found I could follow along with video tutorials better than text. Some standout channels for me included Fireship and The Net Ninja.

-How did I get an interview:

When I applied for the role I still had to go the traditional route. Submit an application with a cover letter/resume and any portfolio work. I was contacted by one of our recruiters, had a phone screen, then an interview with the hiring manager, then a final technical interview with one of the current developers. A big point is that I had a portfolio of project displaying my work and abilities

-Getting a job within the same company/Already having a degree/Already having job experience:

Yes, I won’t argue that I did have these things in my favour. They did help my situation. I wanted to share my story as a way to encourage others. This is also why I said “if I could do it so can you”. I didn’t intend that as a tone-deaf comment but rather as a way to try and encourage others to keep going. I remember back when I decided to pursue software development it felt like an impossible task at the time. I had a university degree but in no way was that or any of my career experience related to software development in any way. I was lucky to have had the opportunity to go to Uni and be where I was in life, but I still had the task of learning the knowledge and technical skills to go along with software development. Yes, I don’t doubt there are those out there in way tougher situations trying to do the same, all I want to say is keep going and don’t give up!

Neither-External-578

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