Hi all
Been on here for a few months, plugging away and pleased to say I landed my first developer job today.
FCC has been an insanely useful learning resource for me, and I will definitely continue to use it even as I train on-the-job.
To anyone who needs a boost - I had next to zero experience with js a few months ago, so keep going with it (as I will) and don’t be scared to apply. Who knows what might happen?
Much love
x
That’s awesome. Congratulations. I’m currently plugging away at the JS section, and sometimes it feels like I’m running up against a brick wall on certain challenges. Definitely, good to hear that keeping your nose to the grindstone paid off for you. Out of curiosity, any other resources you used that you found insanely helpful as well?
It would be great if you did a write-up on your job search. Where did you find your job posting? What did you do to prepare for the interview? How was the interview itself? Lots of people here wonder what this part of the FreeCodeCamp experience is like, so your first hand experience is welcome.
Sure - will write up on this a little later today.
Hey
I’ve been reading Kyle Simpson’s You Don’t Know JS and using Codecademy as well, but FCC and YouTube (specifically NetNinja’s series - superb teacher, and great for those of us who immediately take comfort in a northern accent) have been invaluable so far in actually getting me to understand a little about the language I’m using. I guess it’s different strokes right?
How voluminous was your portfolio when you started looking for work?
Agree with this, I mysefl will be applying for jobs very soon when I finish working on my portfolio. I have no “real” experience as a developer (although I’ve learned a lot from my mistakes building my personal projects) or a degree. I’d love to hear your story.
Look forward to seeing your write up of your job search and the journey getting u there
Think I might disappoint a bit with the story of my ‘journey’ as it isn’t really a very exciting one. But maybe that’s the point.
I started around April, working through the HTML/CSS/SASS bits of Codecademy. I knew a fair bit of HTML and CSS already, just from being a bit of an enthusiast in the past. Becoming a bit frustrated with the bugginess, I put Codecademy on the backburner for a while and delved into a lot (a LOT) of YouTube videos. After going back over HTML5, CSS3 (inc flexbox and grid) and SASS, I started on JS. Again, I used YouTube, but engaged with FCC around this time as well, starting back at the beginning so that I could be sure I didn’t miss anything that was referred to later. Coming to the end of the HTML and CSS sections, I began the Responsive Web Design projects. In answer to those who asked about my portfolio, this was it. In fact, I only did the first three of them (I fully intend to do the others too!) as I wanted to push on into JS and get my head around that.
Having already learnt a bit of JS and jQuery via YouTube, I started applying for junior front end positions around this point (I searched for web developer roles around my area, focusing on the entry-level ones). Not a lot came back. I got a few recruiters, a couple of whom called me, and one actual response from a company I’d applied to directly. I was asked to do an online test before the application could be taken further so I checked out the site that was administering these tests and had a go at some of their practice questions. I took the test a few days later, did OK, and was invited to interview the following week.
The interview itself was friendly but professional, with each interviewer focusing on a different element (my background, my technical knowledge, my general experience). The tech questions were obviously not going to show me at my best. I simply admitted it when I did not know something, all the while emphasising that I was hungry to learn and develop. The feedback from the interview a few days later (when I was told I had got the job) was that this drive and enthusiasm was what they were principally looking for.
I think that’s probably all there is to say, but I’m happy to answer any questions if anyone has any (and I am able to!).
Cheers!
@PortableStick
I found the ad online, in amongst a lot of others. Can’t remember the exact site now but I’m in the UK and it was probably one of Reed, Indeed or Jobsite.
Prepping for the interview:
Mainly, I spent a long while getting my understanding straight of both the role and the company. Other than that, I went back and looked over the jQuery and JS notes I had made, as well as my SASS ones. I also boned up a bit more on Git, just in case that came up, and mobile-first design principles.
See my long post for the interview itself.
Congrats, this is awesome! Very encouraging to hear, as I was just getting in my head earlier today about not being able to make this happen.
Out of curiosity, what were the “requirements” of this job on the ad? A lot of places seem to put at least 1 year of professional developer experience, even though they would hire people with far less or none.
Thanks for the post.
Cheers!
Had that in my head a couple of times too, and no doubt will again as I adjust to what I assume is going to be a very steep learning curve on the job.
The need for experience in a prev job was listed as a desirable thing to have, but not a requirement. The principal things they mentioned in the ad were HTML/CSS /JS/jQ and to have a portfolio demonstrating front end development.