Getting into a career in coding

The Rocketmakers crew includes experienced software engineers and UX designers who are skilled in software development and web design that require knowledge of coding. However, our crew members come from all different career backgrounds whether that’s retail, hospitality, or even a chef!

Have you ever considered a career in coding or are you looking to develop your skills but don’t know where to start? You may think that you need to complete a university course to learn how to code but you’ll be pleased to read there are other routes into a career in coding. We have put together a list of resources inspired by the crew members' own pathways into coding.

Some great organisations teach coding in the form of an online boot camp or training. This is a great option if you’re looking to change your career or kickstart your journey in software development as you will receive career advice and build industry contacts alongside your learning.

Here are the four most mentioned by our team:

If you’re looking to teach yourself coding skills at your own pace, there is an abundance of learning resources online.

For more of a DIY approach, these are our tried and tested resources:

freeCodeCamp and Codecademy are great resources for beginners, they provide free introductory training in multiple languages.
Ever fancied studying at Harvard University? Here’s your chance (well kind of) the university’s CS50: Introduction to Computer Science course is a great online, self-paced introductory course and is free to access!
Developer Roadmaps and Teach Yourself Computer Science are great for self-taught programmes that outline useful topics.
Frontend Masters provides in-depth courses that you pay for monthly.
We recommend checking out Pluralsight and LinkedIn Learning when you’re ready to tackle broader development skills.
Fancy yourself a gamer? The Bristol Games Hub is a fantastic community to learn about coding through the mutual love of video games.
Don’t forget trusty Youtube, several channels are producing useful content for coding. Check out Programming with Mosh if you’re looking for longer tutorials where you build something tangible. The channel Fun Fun Function is great for beginners as it explains different concepts in programming. Plus Web Dev Simplified explains specific topics relating to react and full-stack development.

Finally, an article about routes into coding wouldn’t be complete without a mention of university and higher education courses, although the more traditional route isn’t for everyone, it shouldn't be discounted. There are some great university courses out there that provide in-depth teaching of software development that will prepare you for a career in development or design.

Header image credit to Arif Riyanto on Unsplash.

At Rocketmakers we leverage our experience to build innovative software for companies of all sizes. If you have a vision for a project and you need a technical partner to help you design, develop and deploy it, get in touch: [email protected]