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How I successfully became a software engineer in 3 months

blog.edmondhui.com

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Re: How I successfully became a software engineer in 3 months

#21

Post by halfmatthalfcat »

OrangeMonkey wrote: post #2

I truly love success stories like this. We can make fun of bootcamps, but the people going into them are by-and-large trying to make themselves better than they are. Its the human condition and should be our goal.

You cannot claim this with any certainty. I would counter-claim that many who go into developing are in it for the gold-rush mentality (I can get paid $$$) which ultimately lowers the quality of software. I'm not doubting there are those who go into it with good intentions but it's not something that is cut out for anyone and those who get into it because it's a bright, shiny object are doing themselves a disservice.

Re: How I successfully became a software engineer in 3 months

#22

Post by otras »

The most important part is missing from the article: how they found and got accepted for the first job. The hardest part of switching isn’t attending the bootcamp, it’s finding a company that is willing to take a chance on your lack of experience and future growth potential. Doubly so for switching into the industry during Q3 of 2020 and fully remote. Did they get extremely lucky? Did they go to school with the hiring manager? Was it something in between?

Articles like this are appealing because they paint a rosy picture of easily jumping into it, but in reality, it’s usually much harder. Those details matter.

Re: How I successfully became a software engineer in 3 months

#23

Post by jddil »

digdugdirk wrote: post #12
Kalanos wrote: post #3

you should probably avoid the term engineer and use "developer" instead, and "junior"

As a non-computer "real" engineer - what is the actual designation between these two terms in the CS world? In my experience the title "Engineer" is a legally protected one, and those using it without proper licensure can suffer penalty - take a look at the Strongtowns case for one example. But those in the programming world seem to be able to throw around the title on a whim. Any discussion/history/insight would be…

In 2022 anyone that writes code is an engineer. Words change meaning.

Re: How I successfully became a software engineer in 3 months

#24

Post by EddySchauHai »

digdugdirk wrote: post #12
Kalanos wrote: post #3

you should probably avoid the term engineer and use "developer" instead, and "junior"

As a non-computer "real" engineer - what is the actual designation between these two terms in the CS world? In my experience the title "Engineer" is a legally protected one, and those using it without proper licensure can suffer penalty - take a look at the Strongtowns case for one example. But those in the programming world seem to be able to throw around the title on a whim. Any discussion/history/insight would be…

Very little protection of the term in software across most countries. You can become a chartered engineer from software but you still need your undergrad/masters. Wether software development is an engineering discipline or an art is left to the reader (strong arguments for both sides and no one wins). There are definitely fields in software development that feel more like engineering than others, for example aerospace software. However without requiring an engineering degree/status to get those roles you can’t really tell from the job term what is and isn’t engineering-ish

Re: How I successfully became a software engineer in 3 months

#25

Post by joshmanders »

DogLover_ wrote: post #20

Must admit I find it discouraging that I spend years in university years ago when people now just finish some self-learned material in a matter of a few months. It is only getting simpler every year. I don't see the future being bright for this discipline if the sentiment is that that is all it takes.

> I don't see the future being bright for this discipline if the sentiment is that that is all it takes.

Building web apps isn't rocket science lol. You're just positioning divs on a screen and building basic CRUD apps.

You can indeed learn most of what you need in 3 months. The rest is learned with experience in the real world.

Re: How I successfully became a software engineer in 3 months

#26

Post by sktrdie »

DogLover_ wrote: post #20

Must admit I find it discouraging that I spend years in university years ago when people now just finish some self-learned material in a matter of a few months. It is only getting simpler every year. I don't see the future being bright for this discipline if the sentiment is that that is all it takes.

Not sure why you find it discouraging. Having a degree means you probably went through a more formal process and were exposed to a more academic-way of studying things which can benefit your career as well as your personal life. Knowledge is always good!

Re: How I successfully became a software engineer in 3 months

#28

Post by goodpoint »

digdugdirk wrote: post #12
Kalanos wrote: post #3

you should probably avoid the term engineer and use "developer" instead, and "junior"

As a non-computer "real" engineer - what is the actual designation between these two terms in the CS world? In my experience the title "Engineer" is a legally protected one, and those using it without proper licensure can suffer penalty - take a look at the Strongtowns case for one example. But those in the programming world seem to be able to throw around the title on a whim. Any discussion/history/insight would be…

In some countries it's not legally protected... unfortunately.

I saw it used for people with an amount of learning comparable to a real engineering degree.

Re: How I successfully became a software engineer in 3 months

#29

Post by ichbinlegion »

I don't have formal CS education, but I've been working as a developer for 25 years. In the firm I've been in that last 15 years, only developers with 10+ years of experience actually make a difference. Others are either still learning, or just doing menial work.

It makes me a bit sad this trend of "become a developer in 3 months". It's just a dream.

Re: How I successfully became a software engineer in 3 months

#30

Post by Demonsult »

Kalanos wrote: post #3

you should probably avoid the term engineer and use "developer" instead, and "junior"

As far as I can tell, the only US states that care about the software engineering distinction are Texas and Florida. And it's for legacy bureaucratic reasons more than anything. I'm not personally concerned about someone incorrectly assuming I, software engineer, am the right person to design a bridge.
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