Expect to have to show what you can do in your CV and portfolio!
Is it necessary to have a university education to work as a developer? The quick answer is no. Many developers without a degree continue to thrive in the tech industry.
“Ten percent of applicants,” says Arobas Personnel director, talent acquisition Pierre-Samuel Gendreau. These are guys who have attended camps and workshops. There are people, too, who have learned for themselves. “ Web Development in Pakistan is growing now continuously.
According to a recent Dice article, at least 60% of developers have learned their craft without setting foot in a classroom. The Stack Overflow Developer Study, released this month, actually reveals that 60% of developers have taken a one-line course or Bootcamp, and 87% have learned a programming language or tool from the- same.
However, obtaining a diploma is a reality for many people in the industry.
According to the Stack Overflow survey, nearly half (45%) of professional developers have a bachelor’s degree, while 23% have a master’s degree. One in 10 respondents has only a high school diploma.
No Degree, But Also Interesting?
For employers, the choice of developers often depends on… employers. Pierre-Samuel Gendreau explains to us.
“The business is that the boss always comes here: him, his idea, what is it? If this guy did a baccalaureate at, he would have a preference for people with a baccalaureate. “
Beyond the bosses, the difference between a job offer and nothing at all sometimes comes down to the size of the company, continues the director.
“The certification is in no way important for small businesses, SMEs. It’s a bit like free for all! The certification is not going to be taken seriously, except by those with preconceived ideas. “
In large companies, the chances of an unqualified developer finding a job are lower. Not only do they have scales and standards to meet for each position, but they often use ATS software to sort resumes automatically. If the company decides that a specific degree is required for the job, an application without a degree will be rejected even before a human eye looks through it.
“This is not a machine which can make a decision! Exclaims Pierre-Samuel Gendreau. If you go deep into the sort settings, you can ultimately add that if the CV contains a GitHub link, we will put it aside for viewing. “
Not all managers take this trouble.
Focus On Concrete Experience
How then to start on an equal footing with graduates? It is not the talent that is lacking in autodidacts, and far from it! The director, talent acquisition Pierre-Samuel Gendreau can talk to you about it. “There are people who have a baccalaureate who are not good, and others who are super good without a baccalaureate! “
If only one difference remains between the two groups of candidates, it is at the level of university learning, qualifies the director. The graduates “have an attitude and a way of doing things that can be interesting: they don’t learn how to copy-paste but how to create the structure for the code.
“That said, the recruiter has a couple of tips to make your application stand out Because you have a degree under your belt.
A well-madeCV with concrete experience
In the end, many tech companies are more interested in what a potential employee can do, rather than what degree they may have in their pocket. It will therefore be necessary to indicate to the CV not only professional experience but also sites that you have done, boot camps, online courses, certifications, etc. But knowledge is only part of the equation. If you want to be recognized, you must demonstrate that you can perform the required tasks well.
A well-filled portfolio
Once again, websites, personal projects, links to GitHub, in short, “products that you can present,” summarizes Pierre-Samuel Gendreau. To get there, contribute to “open-source” projects (and make sure those contributions are documented somewhere, like Github) or create one (or more) apps. If you can get into a job interview with a solid portfolio, it can reassure a manager of your abilities, no matter your level of education.
The code
“The concrete experience, for developers, is your code,” underlines the director. So bet on your programming languages in your CV, but also your cover letter.
