I have gotten this question quite a few times over the years. Mostly from college/university students, but also from acquanitances and others further along in their careers. It’s a complex question, as what do we mean when we say “tech”? Generally, though, they’re asking about becoming a developer or a similar role.
Here’s my perspective on getting into a developer/tech role:
Hello,
As you’ve discovered, if you’re interested in IT as a field there are many different directions you can go. A lot of it depends on what kind of work you want to do, and where you want to work. All of the examples you mentioned (Javascript web development, Python web development, etc) are places where there are jobs. To become a developer, first one must learn to program and use the related tools, and then you can think about where to apply that programming knowledge. Which jobs are in high demand depends on what is popular this year, your physical location, and where you look for work online.
I’ve worked professionally in 4 different programming languages over the past 10 years: Ruby, PHP, Python, and HTML/CSS/Javascript. And I’ve worked with lots of other pieces related to that – WordPress, Django, different databases (Oracle, MySQL, Postgres), version control and deployment systems, etc… There are many options regarding which technology you could work with, and you’ll probably change what you’re doing several times over your career. It’s not super-important to choose the right language or type of programming right away, but more important to do something that you can do and build on that over time. I do recommend learning a ‘normal’ programming language, like Javascript, PHP, or Python, as once you know one of them, learning the others is fairly easy.
A few examples to hopefully make this clearer:
1. You could do WordPress websites. This is IT, but it is mostly about finding clients, working with them, and using tools that don’t require a lot of coding (or any coding!). There are many jobs in this area, but they tend to not pay very well. It can be a good place to start, but probably not what you’ll do your entire career. Many of these jobs are online, freelance.
2. Traditional application development in a Microsoft world (ASP.NET, SQL Server, etc). This is often used by larger and more traditional companies, and would normally be a full-time job at a traditional company. If you specialize in Microsoft products you often end up working with Microsoft products for a long-time – it’s more consistent than many other types of development work, but also less exciting, and less likely to allow remote work.
3. New ‘high demand’ jobs like Data Analysts. These are high-paying and likely allow remote work, but you have to be very skilled to get these jobs. They will also change every few years, so it’s not something stable to do for an entire career; you’ll need to keep adapting. Much data work is done using Python; so learning that first is a way to get into data. You can start in this area doing freelancing work and small projects using public datasets or web scraping, then build into larger projects.
These are only a few options; you could also do Python-based Server-side web development, or many other things. These are, however, three of the largest paths to being a developer: 1. build web development skills and specialize; 2. become a Microsoft dev; 3. aim for a developer-adjacent role in data or project management.
You can move between these over time. Start with what you are able to do, make projects or get internships in that area, and build your skills. Once you understand how that area works, you can be an expert in that area or you can transition to do something new in a different area. For me, I really enjoyed the flexibility of the WordPress freelancer career in my 20’s, as it let me travel and build my skills. However, it’s not the way to make the most money or become a traditional application developer. Which decision you choose depends on what you want, in general, in life right now.
If you don’t know which of these to choose, start with option 1; once you know Javascript (or PHP) you can move into other languages if you need to. Once you start, find other developers and talk with them about their journeys and career directions; they will help you adjust your own path.
Best,
Mike
Michael Henry's blog 