Engineering Jobs and Developers
For me, engineering was never just a way of earning money; it was more than that. It was my passion and my motivation for living the life I’ve lived this far, and becoming a developer was part of my big dream. Not to lie here, I never thought—not even once—that I’d become an engineer. Well, not at least a software engineer. I always dreamt of becoming an electrical engineer because that’s what my father used to be before his retirement.
Why Electrical Engineer?
Electrical engineering seemed like something for me at that time because I was really into robots. Being that kid I was back then, I honestly thought I’d be able to make robots and all with that. Soon, I realized I was wrong—sad life. Ironically, life already knew where I wanted to go. After my school, my life completely changed, and I never regret any decisions I ever made at any moment in my life.
Why Software Engineer?
Now, when I look at it, web development seems like something I wanted to do, especially since I already tried out and went into programming a little bit in school after my 10th grade. It was really fun and exciting because of its problem-solving aspects. It always felt like I was solving some kind of challenge with every problem I solved. I love it now—becoming a developer became my passion, and I tried my hardest to get into the programming field.
How Much Does It Cost Us to Become a Developer?
Well, I'd say it costs us literally nothing at all to become a developer. I never spent a single dime on anything I ever learned about programming throughout my entire career of more than 4 years. This is what I love about the tech and IT field—you can get into it without sacrificing anything from your pocket.
How to Find Jobs as Developers?
There are a few things you need to remember before becoming an engineer. Below is a list of things to keep in mind along with a little bit of explanation for each reason and what my mindset is for finding jobs in the IT sector.
- Have a very strong basic knowledge (i.e., HTML, CSS3, and JS)
- Don’t be in a hurry to find a job or get a job.
- Focus on building projects of your own that help either yourself or others around you.
- Let jobs find you instead of you finding jobs.
The Reality of Job Requirements
In reality, most job requirements are kind of bogus. Let’s be honest, you don’t need to know the time complexity of your CSS or HTML. That's just a bad job requirement for jobs that don't really require such a high level of DSA (Data Structures and Algorithms) knowledge.
Most of the time, these job postings are just copy-pastes from descriptions of big tech companies because most businesses try to follow and streamline their hiring process according to these tech giants. They set the standard for the industry.
I’d say you shouldn’t get scared or worried about the requirements in the job posting. You have to be really confident in your skills. You need to be confident enough that you can convince your employer once you start talking about your skills and achievements.
Then Is DSA Bad?
Well, I wouldn’t say that it’s bad. Instead, I’d say you need to know that it is useful, and you need to understand where it should be applied to get the most out of it. If you’re making designs and building the frontend with HTML, CSS, and JS, DSA is pretty much useless because you’re not going to need it for manipulating DOM elements on an HTML website.
For me, anything extra you know in terms of skills or knowledge is always a plus because, in the future, it’ll always come in handy somewhere in some way. With that said, it shouldn’t stop you from exploring, learning, or going deep into certain topics.
If you like DSA and problem-solving, then please go for it, and it will be worth it. But if you’re not interested in DSA, don’t worry at all. You can continue without it and learn as you go forward in your career.
However, there are jobs, like those in data analytics, data science, ML, AI, etc., where it’s absolutely essential to know DSA. In these fields, you don’t have much of a choice but to learn it because it’s crucial.
I Don’t Have Time and Need a Job Urgently
Here’s a simple answer: If you just want to get a job for the sake of getting one, then you can start applying for jobs right now, and you'll likely get nowhere with it. The point of having a job is not to show people or your family that you have a job. The point is to get a source of income that will help you achieve your future dreams and goals. It will help you grow your career and do the things you always wanted to do in life.
Don’t rush to get a job. First, build your skills and work on some projects, then think about getting a job. A job without skills or projects is useless and probably won’t pay enough to get you to your dreams. So, you either get a job now and cry later, or you cry now and smile at your success later. The choice is yours.
Conclusion
For me, the best advice I can give to developers is to become a developer because you want to be a developer. Don’t be one just because you don’t have a choice and you’re stuck in this field. It’s never too late to change your field if you want to, or if you have to. But don’t sit and regret your decisions all your life. If you don’t like what you're doing right now, then go and do something else. Find something that makes you happy.
