Am i on the right path?

Hello everyone, i am a 15 year old teenager. Although I am too young, i am planing my future that is why i started learning programming. After getting lost in the huge world of programming, i would like to know weather the path(s) I am walking is right.

I am torn apart between my competitive programming and web development.

I started competitive programming a year ago, and i have won the following awards:

  • Second place on the national competition in my age.
  • ~30 place among all country contestants
  • bronze in MG cup
  • contesting in European junior Olympiad in informatics

    And acquired some knowledge in competitive programming algorithms, and data structures…

    As a web developer i have finished the intermediate js algorithm challenges, and most of the front end projects, started using node.js with express and mongodb and i am currently creating a simple, not secure social network to get some exprerience with back-end/full stack development.

    I have a few goals set:

  • Start earning as a freelancer
  • Get a decent job as a developer as soon as i finish high school

    I don`t want to get too deep in computer science but i want to be a respectable programmer to make sure i have a safe future.

    My main questions are:

    Should i continue with competitive programming and why?

    If i continue the web development path am i doing the right thing?

  • 1 Like

    It sounds like you’re having fun and learning, which is the best thing you can do at 15. You’ve found a few different avenues for exploring programming, and both of them will introduce you to other aspects of computer science. Some of those will engage you and some of them won’t. That’s great. Don’t get caught up on an end destination. Technology is changing and so are you. Have fun, stay curious, and see where it leads you.

    1 Like

    Good God I wish I had your drive towards programming when I was 15 :smiley: In these days a superb portfolio (may vary with countries) is what counts so I would say that your competitive programming will give you some edge over other candidates. When you show a potential employer that programming is what you did from the day you were born I’m pretty sure you will get the job.

    At some point throw in some courses (like FCC if you plan going front or back-end) to systematize your knowledge. Do some non-profit projects or better join some team to earn some experience in teamwork (and Git); it can be anything (my pick is a volunteer job in total conversion/mod team for a certain video game).

    It’s hard to tell what future brings but some say that machine learning will become prevalent in developed countries. If I were you I would give it a thought :wink:

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