adminYou have completed your degree in computer sciences or software engineering but don’t know how to get your first junior software engineer job. If yes, then you are at the right place. In this article, you will learn about ten steps that you can take to get a job as a junior software engineer.
10 Steps For Getting Hired As a Junior Software Engineer
Here are ten steps you can take to brighten up your prospects of getting hired as a junior software developer.
Decide What Kind of Programmer You Want to Become
You might be excited to get your first job as a software developer but you need to understand that there are many different types of software developers out there. Some of them are as follows:
- Front end development
- Back end development
- App Development
- DevOps
- Testing automation
You need to decide what kind of programmer you want to become. Once you have decided on the type of developer you want to become, you can proceed to next step.
Lay A Solid Foundation
Start off your learning the basics of computer programming. This includes everything from fundamental programming concepts such as variables, functions, loops etc. to design patterns. Next, wrap your head around some of the most popular frameworks and how each of them work. You can take online courses, learn from tutorials or read a lot of articles that guide you on how to lay a solid foundation for your development career.
Understand the Tools and Product
Before you apply to any job, you should first spend time understanding the product and tools. What products or services the company is offering to their customers? Who will use their product and services? Which tools do they use to develop software? By having an in depth understanding of the product, target audience and the tools, you can strengthen your case. Do your research about product target audience and tools before you apply for a job opening. This will also send a positive message to the employer that you know about their company, which will increase your chances of getting hired.
Put Yourself In Users Shoes
When you are doing your research about the target users, you should also consider how users will use the software. How will they interact with the software and how will it solve their biggest pain points? In fact, you should start thinking like an end user when developing a software. This will help you develop a software that is tailor made to fulfill user needs and also provide them with the best user experience.
Develop, Develop, Develop
Practice makes a man perfect. You might have heard and read it on a number of occasions but did you know that it is actually true. The more software you develop, the better you get at it. You can begin by developing what you learn. Let’s say, you learn how to develop a basic software using C# by using a tutorial, put your knowledge into practice by developing software. This will polish your software development skills tremendously and give you the hands-on experience that really matters in taking your career to the next level. You can also look for freelance projects and add both of them to your portfolio so you can show the prospective employer that you have done that before and you can do it again.
Test Your Work
Once you have completed your first project, it is highly recommended that you put it through a stringent testing procedure. You might come across a lot of errors and bugs but that should not demotivate you. In fact, you should treat error messages as your friend and learn from them. Avoid repeating the same mistakes in the future and it will make you a better software developer.
Communication and Documentation
If you think that you can develop a software alone then, you are wrong. You will have to work with a team and workload will be divided amongst all team members. That is where your communication and collaboration skills will come in handy. Next, you should also document everything so that other people can pick up from where you have left off and you can also refer back to it when you need to.
Create a Separate Resume For Each Job Opening
One mistake most junior software engineers make is they tend to send the same resume for all jobs. They don’t realize that every junior software developer job is different and has different requirements. You need to personalize your resume to suit the job opening. Yes, it might take a lot more effort to create a unique resume for each job opening but it will increase your chances of getting hired as a junior software developer.
Start Applying for Jobs
Now is the time to start applying for jobs. Look for jobs that offer you an average salary in the beginning. A junior software engineer salary in the UK is around 31,000 British pounds while associate software engineer salary hovers around 36,000 British pounds. Once you have years of experience under your belt, you can demand higher salaries. Also consider other factors such as organizational culture, benefits and perks and overall environment before making the final decision.
Learn From Every Interview
The competition in the software development industry is heating up. Recruiters receive dozens of resumes for each open position. This means that you should not expect to get selected on your first interview. Instead, you should consider every interview as a learning opportunity. You might have to give multiple interviews before you get selected but you should not lose hope and give it your best shot in every interview. Reflect back on each interview and it will help you highlight your weaknesses. Work on your weaknesses and improve them and soon you will have none of them left.
What steps do you take to increase your chances of getting hired as a junior software developer? Share it with us in the comments section below.
Josh Davidson
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