Tight On Funds And Time , Please advise

Career Advice
#1

I have CS background but been out of the loop (especially hands on coding) for about 5 to 6 years. I can’t manage a 12 hr shift dead end tech support job which includes a long commute along with learning to the code at the same time which is why I have decided to solely pursue learning for the next 3 months . I have funds which can sustain me for about 4 months. I am working on Colt steele’s web dev bootcamp course after which I plan to deep dive into the FCC front end curriculum. My biggest worry is choosing the wrong track and not being able to land a junior web developer job after 3 months of full time study. My peers who are experienced web developers swear by PHP and wordpress . I feel by learning php now I will be competing with those who are far more experienced than me and thus narrowing my chances of landing a job at the earliest.
Been a long time lurker at the getting a dev jobs section on fcc, I still can’t find posts relating to the salary campers are offered once they land jobs after completing the front end certificate path. All I want to know what is the minimum salary one can expect after acquiring skills from fcc / colt steele web dev course which are primarily based on self studying rather instructor - led courses.

I can’t really make up my mind on how to go forward with this . Given the limited resources I have , I am desperate for guidance.

1 Like
#2

  • Which stack to study
    – The only advice I can give you is to look at the job postings in your area. My view of the issue is that the most important thing is to show that you have fully learned a technology stack. Given the fact that you also “have a background in CS” (I’m guessing that means a CS degree?) employers should be able to see that you can learn specific technologies that they may require.

  • Salary discussion on the forum
    – Most people feel uncomfortable discussing this, especially in public. However, since campers have complained about a lack of salary information in the past I created this topic for those who are willing to discuss their salaries to all do so in the same place.

  • Front End Certificate
    – I don’t consider the front end certificate to be enough for someone to be job ready. Some campers do find jobs at this point. Very often those campers have been doing freelance work or have done a lot of learning outside of FCC beyond what is required to achieve the first certification. And they’re lucky. That’s not to say that they aren’t also very talented. They are. It requires hard work, skill, and luck.

#3

I think you just need to look at job listings in your area for skills required, what stack is most popular/in-demand, and starting salary level. Those will be the correct answer for you.

FCC has international students, and some students make a few hundred dollars a month… but that’s the standard of living in their own country. So you can’t really compare apples to apples because of difference in location, type of company, skill level, experience, background education… just so many factors.

If PHP/WP is in demand in your area, then maybe you can quickly learn these and become familiar with it. Take on some freelance jobs (look for businesses in your area that may need a website/redesign.) The few hundred dollars you earn for a site will extend your savings and buy you more time to learn. – you don’t have to be good in PHP to work with WP. But if you have a strong design/aesthetics style, then you have a high chance of landing WP design clients. Of course, knowing some HTML/CSS will also help.

Small business are more into WP, Shopify platform because that’s the easiest and affordable for them. You can find custom/freelance jobs in this area, but also lots of competition.

You may also want to look into getting a part-time job (fastfood, grocery, restaurant) for a few hours just to earn something so you can continue your self-study longer and replenish your savings.

2 Likes
#4

I have a few sweet free resources for you:

Code your way to $1k
https://skillcrush.com/download-code-your-way-to-1k?submissionGuid=d1b86de3-4d31-43e6-ac9a-47702cb0d641

And, similarly, How to Earn $10k While Learning to Code
http://www.completewebdevelopercourse.com/book/HowToEarn10,000WhileLearningToCode.pdf

At least, I found them helpful for the “money now please” problem.

2 Likes
#5