Practice makes perfect
The first tip I would give to anyone who wants to work in software development is practice. Software development does not come easy for everyone, so putting in time and effort to practice your languages and skills is necessary. Before starting my first job in software development, I spent a whole year teaching myself to code as I knew I needed to put the time in before I could consider myself a ‘coder’. You will need time to practice and hone your skills before a company considers hiring you.
Language
Secondly, I recommend trying out different languages and finding which suits you best. You may be working with this language daily if you decide to go for a job that uses it, so ensuring you enjoy it is essential. Another benefit to trying out many different languages at the start is that if a company is hiring and you understand most of the languages they use, it will increase your chances of being hired.
Constant improvement
Software development is constantly improving, which means you need to be too. Once you have your fundamentals, you must look for how to improve yourself. Some examples include learning more languages to add to your collection, testing yourself on your current languages by using fewer lines of code to complete a specific task, or working on your speed. Continuing to educate and upskill yourself is vital within the industry; it also allows you to become the absolute best version of yourself you can be.
Free and cheap tools
There are plenty of free and cheap tools to help improve or start your software development journey; you should use them if you aren’t already. There are thousands of videos on YouTube to help you learn different languages, and the best part is that they are free, so if you are low on money, this is something to look at for learning fundamentals. If you want more in-depth videos on your languages/frameworks, you can look at websites like Udemy, which has thousands of courses to meet your needs, and they always have sales too!
Education path
Before starting your software development journey, think about your education path. By this, I mean whether you want to go to university and get a degree in software development before starting your job hunt or if you wish to get directly involved in work by completing an apprenticeship. I decided to teach myself for a year before starting an apprenticeship, and I have never looked back. This is personal to you; however, I chose this path because I didn’t enjoy education; others may argue that they needed a degree to land their job.
Bonus:
When you are learning your languages and frameworks, create a portfolio that you can present to potential employers during the hiring process. Even if you attain a degree before looking for work, companies will always want to see projects and code you have worked on to see how it relates to their work. This will also set you aside from the other candidates.
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