J. R. Swab

How To Get Your First Programming Job

Categories: [Technology], [How To]

Most coding programs are great at getting people started coding, but leave the new programmer without the path to actually getting their first job.

Here's a great approach to having recruiters come to you and have the best chance at getting interviews.

First, only focus on what you can prove your capable of within your LinkedIn profile, keep your resume short, and "create" your experience even without a previous job.

So, if your like most people, you're probably thinking, "Ok, great... But how do you do that?"

I asked myself that same question when I tried to get my first programming job without a degree in computer science.

I ran a small experiment and within 30 days, I was turning down recruiters daily because I had too many options way better than most recruiters where sending me.

I outline exactly how I did it in my book, but I'll give you a 30,000 foot view here:

Step 1: Identify your target industry.

Your target industry is where you want to spend the next year or so writing code.

The reason you want to have this clear in your mind is because it will allow you to focus on what matters to get a job in that industry.

Step 2: Focus only on the technologies in that industry.

Focus is key and most developers try to stack on a hundred skills to "look" impressive. But that makes you look like a "jack of all trades" and master of none.

If you get asked questions about every thing you put on your resume you want to be able to impress the hiring manager every time.

How? Simple. Follow...

Step 3: Write your resume to set yourself up for success

Don't add technologies you only touched once. This may seem obvious but it's extremely common to have an "overstuffed" technology resume. (heck I did it too)

The "trick" is to only add something to your resume if you could teach it to a friend. In order to teach something you really need to understand the concept.

This essentially "primes" the hiring manager to ask you questions on the topics that you already know a ton about. Which makes you look better than the rest of your competition.

Step 4: Use the "experience" justifier.

This is a simple "experience" technique that essentially shows the person reading your resume that you have experience even though you have not had a previous coding job.

If you've already created your resume to only display what you can explain, its typically an the icing on the cake that will push you over the edge.

I've created a framework with examples to follow and you can get it in my book.

Here's What To Do Next:

If you found this helpful, check out my book.

It's all about getting to your first programming job FAST ...even if you don't have a college degree or been to a coding boot camp.

If you found this post helpful, it's just the tip of the iceberg.

The book lays out exactly what to do in great detail and you can get it here:

codefoundry.email/mentorships

Here are some things you'll learn:

This book is only 70 pages but is packed with valuable content on every single page.

This is a limited time offer, so get your copy now.