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Jason Pallone
Jason Pallone
11,340 Points
Posted by Jason Pallone
Jason Pallone
11,340 Points

What's expected of a junior dev?

So I was wondering, as a junior dev I know it's critical to be VERY open minded and willing to learn, as well being eager! Asking lots of questions and don't be afraid to admit you don't know something. What else for junior devs? Like technically speaking what should they know as far as programming goes, should they be able to program a fully functioning blog site on their own, or just know enough basics to get it operating? I love programming and I am very passionate about it! I want to stand out as a junior dev and be successful as a developer and life long student :) thank you all!!!

1 Answer

martinjones1
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martinjones1
Front End Web Development Techdegree Graduate 44,824 Points

I would say it honestly depends on the company and what they are looking for. Having the passion and drive will definitely help.

Maybe start to have a look at different junior dev jobs that you are interested in and see what they are looking for.

I would also say that when searching for a job, try searching for the term without Junior in the job title as well.

I have seen many job descriptions here in the UK where the company or a recruiter will list every technology under the sun on a Junior Dev job role, which can put you off. Then another job description, say for "Front-End Developer" will list just the core technologies you would expect, that that are looking for someone who keeps up-to-date with the latest technologies and that further training will be provided.

Lastly, speaking from my own experience, don't leave it too late either, I questioned for a long time if I was ready, maybe learn a bit more here and there before applying, then repeat this cycle. But getting your foot in the door at the right company and doing the learning on the job will really help you learn so much more and apply your knowledge on a daily basis as a developer.

Christian Higgins
Christian Higgins
15,758 Points

Hi, Martin Jones , just out of curiosity, are you currently working as a dev? Always curious to hear how people got their first start.

martinjones1
.a{fill-rule:evenodd;}techdegree seal-36
martinjones1
Front End Web Development Techdegree Graduate 44,824 Points

Hi Christian Higgins,

Yes currently working as a front-end developer.

I got my start in somewhat the usual way, made a website for somebody, they then worked for a company and recommend me. I did a WordPress website theme for them freelance. They then offered me a permanent position, which I worked at for 2 years. I never really did any technical interviews for it or anything like that.

I liked this job and learned a bit, but after 2 years of working with WordPress and the same website, it did start to feel like a cog in a wheel and I wasn't being challenged anymore.

I was then applying for jobs last year, which really did feel like applying for jobs from scratch again and what most people talk about when watching YouTube videos and researching in general, so I felt I had to prepare a lot more for it, technical interviews, coding challenges etc.

Went through recruiters and applied at several different companies, all of which did it differently.

1 company gave me a CSS and JS challenge to complete in 1 hr, which was technically impossible given what they were asking to me complete, but made me realise they wanted to see how you work under pressure and what tasks you would prioritise.

1 company I had to do a presentation for on a brief they provided.

Another company I had 2 interviews, the 1st I had to do a technical interview which involved a coding challenge just on pen and paper. In the 2nd stage I had to the code something from a mockup in 1hr and get as far as I could.

1 company totally did not care for me, the guy was 45 minutes late and I had another job interview to get to (something I learned to try and avoid stacking 2 job interviews on the same day if possible as could be quite stressful and may not prepare the best). We went into an open office, sat a desk then they decided on the fly what challenge I should get, but him and the other guy kept arguing over what the challenge should be, then someone would walk up-to the desk to ask him a question, to which he would say he was doing an interview. This one was by far the most bizarre experience.

The last interview I went to, they were really relaxed, just look at some of the projects I had done, asked me about myself and could see I was willing to constantly learn more.

I had a few job offers, but went with the last company as it felt a better fit for me personally. They have been great as well, they have paid for me to complete an Angular course, give me the freedom to learn about new things whenever I need to and contribute any ideas I might have. This last year has really pushed me to learn a lot more.

So, for a TL;DR and to tie it back to the post, I would say:

  • Don't leave applying too late, applying and interviews will give you experience in itself and you could get job offers, you won't if you don't apply that its for sure! ^_^
  • Apply for jobs that you may think you are not qualified for, I didn't know any Angular, TypeScript, Redux etc. but showed the willingness to learn
  • Find a company that is the right fit for you and the company
  • Decide on what you want from the job of being a developer

Hope this helps provide some useful insights and information :)

Christian Higgins
Christian Higgins
15,758 Points

Martin Jones , I appreciate it. I've learned mostly on my own and have a few Wordpress sidegigs, but haven't been able to break into a fulltime job. I haven't gotten anything past a phone screen and recruiters mostly ghost me. Just have to keep at it. It certainly doesn't cost anything to apply for a job.

Jason Pallone
Jason Pallone
11,340 Points
Jason Pallone
Jason Pallone
11,340 Points

Thanks for the info! I'm on the edge of if I should apply or Not yet, I only know like basic JS and HTML.. My CSS is lacking, but I am moving on to backend like node/express etc.. So I feel I could possibly land a job, but highly unlikely right now haha

martinjones1
.a{fill-rule:evenodd;}techdegree seal-36
martinjones1
Front End Web Development Techdegree Graduate 44,824 Points

Excellent, I am really sure that you will both get there that is for sure!

The fact that you are on here right now discussing it is something.

I personally found some YouTube videos helped as well just to listen to and see other peoples journey.

Check out the videos below, hopefully one of them will be of use, I just treat them as podcasts and have a listen while doing something else, still do it now :)

Wes Bos https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IcUG2xQiBo4

Aaron in beta https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YvfqujPLJn0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WnBQOdsf4X0

Plenty others as well, let me know if you guys have any :D