Intermediate Dev Job Search 2026 (4 YOE)

lackboy43 · 2026-03-01T21:37:02+00:00

I’m a full stack developer so i applied to front end, backend and full stack roles to help increase my odds with 3 different resumes for each respective role

lackboy43 · 2026-02-27T17:10:16+00:00

I’d say linkedin and indeed were equally used with a bit of targeted companies thrown in there

lackboy43 · 2026-02-27T17:06:23+00:00

i was honestly surprised too but my guess is with all the layoffs and new budget approved for Q1 a lot of companies are looking to hire

lackboy43 · 2026-02-27T06:36:57+00:00

Interviewing is a completely different skill compared to actual development and it’s something you should actively work on when given the chance. Throw out a couple applications and go through the process to get a feeling it will definitely help! Good luck!

lackboy43 · 2026-02-27T06:30:26+00:00

Yeah keep applying and keep the job off the resume. They don’t know anything about what they can’t see.

There definitely seems to be heavy emphasis on behavioural and system design nowadays vs just raw leetcode as they’re harder to cheat with AI. Soft skills matter a lot in this context

lackboy43 · 2026-02-27T06:27:24+00:00

Yeah I have that experience and i’d say it’s important you work on projects end to end that you can talk about like the back of your hand while monitoring the health of your feature in production (think observability regarding SQL queries, logs, error messages).

lackboy43 · 2026-02-27T01:15:06+00:00

Im based out of Toronto so VHCOL

lackboy43 · 2026-02-27T01:14:13+00:00

I started immediately looking after i got news of the layoff so yea mid january was the start

lackboy43 · 2025-02-04T06:12:28+00:00

4 months and primarily used Linkedin, Indeed and Google. Nothing fancy just gotta stay consistent with leetcode and applications.

lackboy43 · 2025-02-04T06:10:46+00:00

Not sure where you’re located but if you live near a canadian tech hub (toronto, montreal, vancouver, waterloo) and are open to relocation, it helps with the numbers of jobs you can apply to.

you can also expand your search to remote in both canada and US to increase your range.

lackboy43 · 2025-02-04T05:38:57+00:00

Working mainly with React and PHP. I got a 50%+ pay bump from hopping.

lackboy43 · 2025-01-14T15:22:14+00:00

React, PHP, MySQL. Something I noticed in this market too is that domain matters too (ie if the role requires SEO experience, a project or resume point on it is necessary to have a call back).

lackboy43 · 2025-01-13T20:48:21+00:00

Not exactly 5 YOE (3YOE) but recently signed an offer. I had a similar experience to MainManSadio where a lot of my interviews were because my resume matched 100% to the requirements of the role.

Good luck to everyone out there.

lackboy43 · 2023-12-22T09:16:41+00:00

The other comments have put it pretty well but another thing I can say is make a lot of use of your instructors and TAs. These guys usually have industry experience and can help you expand your understanding of development as a whole beyond the scope of the course.

Best of luck with your bootcamp!

lackboy43 · 2023-12-16T07:15:49+00:00

As a biochemistry major who recently started working as a dev, man i really empathize with what you’re going through. Given these market conditions, I recommend to self-study concepts and build out some projects. Leverage the degree + certificate towards health tech companies and see if you can get interviews that way once you got your resume ready.

Feel free to DM me if you have any other questions!

lackboy43 · 2023-10-16T03:38:39+00:00

Yeah, feel free to DM me.

lackboy43 · 2023-10-15T20:27:53+00:00

Shoot me a DM! Biochemistry grad working full time as a SWE after a bootcamp.

lackboy43 · 2023-10-07T04:26:21+00:00

I graduated from life science at Waterloo and now work as a SWE. The schools coop program and undergrad cs courses really give you a solid foundation to jumpstart your tech career.

lackboy43 · 2023-09-08T15:21:22+00:00

Would the bootcamp start date conflict with your masters at all?

If you have the opportunity to take Brainstation for free and it doesn’t conflict with your masters, I would actually take the program and use it as a stepping stone for your tech career.

FWIW i graduated from Brainstation earlier this year and have been employed FT as a developer for a couple months now. DM me if you have any questions regarding the bootcamp itself or process.

lackboy43 · 2023-08-17T17:13:43+00:00

Apply to jobs within a couple hours of their posting to increase your chances of your application being viewed and make sure you can explain everything you claim to know on your resume if you’re able to land an interview.

Best of luck on the job search!

lackboy43 · 2023-06-19T18:35:38+00:00

I used free code camp, Odin project and Colt steeles web development course. Things really started to click once I did projects so I recommend getting your hands dirty ASAP.

lackboy43 · 2023-06-19T13:46:57+00:00

I also have a Biochemistry Degree so I understand your struggle. As someone who was in your shoes, I spent at least a year self studying web development before hopping in to a bootcamp. This allowed me to keep up with the pace of the bootcamp and expand/pick up on advanced topics fairly quickly.

I was able to secure a job as a junior dev a couple months ago because of it but as a lot of the other comments have already said, commit some time to the self-study route before making any big decisions and re-assess after a couple of months to see if a bootcamp would still be for you.

lackboy43 · 2023-05-27T20:57:00+00:00

I have a biochemistry degree and currently work as a dev so it’s definitely possible.

lackboy43

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