How to become a programmer without a degree

To be clear, these courses are not intensive or comprehensive and will not prepare you fully for working in programming. These courses are designed to give you a better insight into how coding works and provide you with exercises to practice basic skills.

Once you are comfortable with coding basics, you can further your education with a coding boot camp. Coding boot camps are intensive programs that help you build foundational knowledge in core technologies. It is important to note that boot camps will not have the time or bandwidth to delve into more theoretical concepts.

Unlike university computer science programs, boot camps are designed with a strong emphasis on practical skills and hands-on experience that employers are looking for when hiring. Skills taught in boot camps can include (but are not limited to):

• HTML

• CSS

• JavaScript

• jQuery

• Database manipulation

• Server-side development

• Web applications

• C#

• Java

• Python

• Go

These programs also offer greater flexibility as you can attend a virtual online coding boot camp on either a full-time or part-time basis. Many boot camps can be completed in three to six months. It is important to note that boot camps are not self-study programs, and you will plan on attending regularly.

If you attend a boot camp, you will receive individualized training, education, and interaction as if you were attending an in-person course. You will engage in focused, accountable study and gain proficiency in a wide range of coding languages and work on individual and group projects that will eventually serve as the core of your portfolio.

By the end of the boot camp, you should have a level of comfort, familiarity, and knowledge of coding. You will also receive a certification that proves you have marketable skills, work well under tight deadlines, and are able to submit high-quality assignments. This will enable you to hit the ground running on your first day on the job.

In addition to boot camps and self-learning, you should consider getting started by building your portfolio. These days, an advanced online portfolio is an essential component of a strong tech resume, especially when you are looking for a career in programming.

With a portfolio website, you will be able to show employers that you understand the technologies needed for developing a site and demonstrate your other capabilities via linked projects.

You may also want to consider getting involved in open-source development communities such as Github. These allow you to contribute to significant projects, expand your knowledge, and make excellent connections in the field (especially in widely-used programming and scripting language groups).