How to Become a Programmer

Today, programming is among the most in-demand skills. The number of software engineers and programmers worldwide is growing and will continue to grow to almost 30 million by 2024.

Programmers are needed in almost any company connected with technology. Programmers work on apps, websites, and even devices controlled by a program. To become one of these in-demand professionals, you need to know how to learn to program. Here’s everything you might want to know about how to become a programmer.

How to become a programmer: Choose the right language

Selecting the best programming language according to your goals is a significant step. There are multiple options you can consider.

Java

Java is one of the most popular coding languages. Java is a statically-typed, object-oriented, general-purpose programming language with very user-friendly structures that are quite easy to grasp as a beginner. Its wide range of applications makes it a great choice to start with.

By learning Java, you can ingrain all of the basic ins and outs of programming. It can also help you start thinking like a programmer.

Many enterprise applications, web applications and Android developers use Java. We all know about Twitter and Spotify, but many don’t know that they’re designed using Java.

Python

According to some reports, Python is the second-most popular programming language among software engineers. Python is easy to learn because the dynamic-typed programming language has a high readability level.

Python is used for the backend of websites, business applications and artificial intelligence applications. Netflix, Instagram, and many other successful apps have Python at their core.

Ruby

Ruby is a good option for programmers, as it’s very flexible and easy to use to code. Ruby is a mature language with a stable structure and is finding its way into more programming. Ruby is most often used for creating backend websites, as well as for writing scripts.

Other popular languages for programmers

Some other popular languages for programmers and software engineers include Swift, which is often used to develop applications for Apple’s iOS and macOS. You might also consider C#, C++, JavaScript, PHP, SQL and R.

Four online courses to learn how to become a programmer

If you’re a beginner, it can be helpful to take some online programming courses or coding bootcamps. An effective online course can give you the guidelines and frameworks you need to succeed as a programmer.

1. CodeGym

CodeGym teaches core Java, including the basics of the language, object-oriented programming, multi-threading and collections, and more.

In the CodeGym course, you’ll find more than 1,200 practical tasks with different levels of complexity. By solving them, you will be able to create an interesting application, such as a simple video game. CodeGym has a built-in validator that checks the results and provides help and advice. For extra help, you can ask questions and get advice from CodeGym staff or other students.

2. Udacity

Udacity‘s online courses are developed in collaboration with pioneering companies like Facebook and Google. Udacity addresses various topics from information technology to website design, and there are programming courses specifically for beginner programmers.

3. Codeacademy

Codeacademy is a smaller online course, but many beginner programmers report better results than other learning platforms. You’ll need to practice concepts yourself to get the most from the lessons, but the level of content is pretty good.

4. FreeCodeCamp

FreeCodeCamp is a nonprofit organization focused on teaching people how to code and program for free, as its name suggests. There is an active community of programmers, which you can tap into for engaging online tutorials, chat rooms, lectures and articles.

The bottom line

Regular practice can make anyone a professional in any field. Learning how to become a programmer takes a lot of practice, but you can start with short problem-solving sessions every day to understand the fundamentals. Online courses and open-source programming platforms, such as Github, GitLab, BitBucket and Amazon’s BeanStalk, can also help you know how to program by exploring and experimenting with coding.

This article was written by Johnny Selawsky for HackerNoon and was lightly edited and published with permission.