What is expected from a junior full stack developer
Posted by shangarepi@reddit | learnprogramming | View on Reddit | 24 comments
Hi, I have been getting some pace in full stack development, and already done some projects.
My question is, lets say I get hired at a company, what do they expect from me.
Can you give suggest some projects that a junior should be able to do?
Feeling_Photograph_5@reddit
Hi, I'm an Engineering Manager and I've hired many junior developers. What I'm looking for is proven talent. What have you done that would make me think you might be a good fit on my team? I'm looking for things like a college degree (shows discipline, commitment, and the ability to overcome challenges) or at the very least a really good portfolio that shows a passion for building awesome stuff with code. If someone has a non-CS degree, a code camp shows a commitment to changing careers.
If you don't have a degree at all you're unlikely to get an interview. The competition is just too stiff. If you go that route, you'd need a really impressive portfolio and a recommendation from someone I know.
I can't over emphasize the importance of a good portfolio. Make sure it has some non-trivial projects. Basic React doesn't cut it anymore.
As far as skills go, I want to see strong knowledge of the front-end, which is the core technologies plus React. I want to see a decent understanding of the back end. Language doesn't matter that much but these days I'd recommend Python and some flavor of SQL.
I want to see that you can deploy your projects in some way. Basic AWS is a nice skill to have.
And some knowledge of Gen AI is a good thing. It's the shiny new thing in technology, so show me that you're curious about that kind of stuff. Build a basic app with a HuggingFace model or an AI API and put it up in your portfolio.
And of course you need enough technical chops to make it through a coding interview. Building a bunch of projects will get you most of the way there. Doing the easy questions on a LeetCode top questions list is a good idea, too.
sunrrat@reddit
That's actually very helpful! I am also looking for a full-stack role right now, I have worked for 1,5 years at a company using Vue.js and Laravel. My role was front end focused, because this start-up didn't have a dedicated front end developer, but I contributed to debugging and fixing bugs for the APIs we had. I am making a rate limiter app in Laravel right now, with testing.
Apart from that though, I can't think of an interesting project by myself to add to my portfolio. The only other project I have with Laravel is the Chirper app, which I plan to flesh out with post reactions and replies.
Any guidance at this point would go a long way for me, as I am a returning student to a Maths degree (I plan on continuing my studies in CS), currently working 50hrs/ week in a fast food restaurant to make a living. Transitioning to a position in the career I plan to follow would help me in so many ways and also leave me some much needed free time to cool down.
Thanks in advance!
Feeling_Photograph_5@reddit
There are a lot of people who cover this very topic on YouTube and elsewhere but Tim here is one of my favorite code content creators. In this video he breaks down five good projects for various roles. Hopefully you find some inspiring!
https://youtu.be/V1hjSeSF4xg?si=MIflFWEI2s3sTd6l
sunrrat@reddit
Thanks a ton!
So_Dev@reddit
And what what I'd you don't code on desktop??
EasyLowHangingFruit@reddit
Hi there!
You'll be expected to deliver small tasks to Prod with some supervision.
Thus you'll be expected to know some git strategy i.e. GitFlow, or GitHub Flow, you'll be expected to write decently maintainable code, unit and integration test it, and deploy it through the stages until Prod, the monitor it via Splunk, for example.
That's pretty much it.
ThisIsJustCharles@reddit
Do they expect git or you can use github desktop? Or git is the better way and the choice at work?
StupidScape@reddit
So git is just a program. It tracks changes in repositories - which are codebases.
GitHub is a website that stores repositories.
GitHub Desktop is a git gui tool. It abstracts the cli commands you’d have to remember and run away, so you just need to click buttons. It’s just a helper.
There are many of these git gui tools. Fork, git sublime, vs code has its own, same as IntelliJ, etc…
I’ve never seen a job require a specific git tool to be used. They may choose to store the repositories not in GitHub, but a different repository host, such as gitlab. But that’s a different conversation.
ThisIsJustCharles@reddit
Oh okay thanks. I thought companies never use these gui git tools
EasyLowHangingFruit@reddit
It doesn't really matter. I use IntelliJ's built in git tools in a daily basis. You might get asked git commands in interviews though. My recommendation is to learn git commands, and a git app for daily use i.e. Git Desktop, GitKraken or IntelliJ's Git Tools.
EugeneFromDiscord@reddit
Hey prob a dumb question but how do you learn about git strategies. I’m teaching myself about GitHub right and I know about pull and push requests but my knowledge of it is very basic
mollyinmysweattea@reddit
Just learned some GitHub/git stuff last night and the GitHub docs were wayyyy better than any video tutorial and help explain the main functions of git and GitHub.
frkadark@reddit
https://www.freecodecamp.org/learn/relational-database/#learn-nano-by-building-a-castle
I would say, do all the stuff on course... But there is that one "Learn Git by Building an SQL Reference Object" and I don't know why I remember it like "it was superb" (but it implies you to learn SQL :D).
StupidRobber@reddit
Honestly, that’s just about all you need. You should probably learn how to revert to a previous version, and what a conflict is and how it could come up.
I’m sure there are tons of different commands and other ways to utilize git, but the basics should get you by pretty decently.
EasyLowHangingFruit@reddit
Hey, no problem. Happy to help!
GitHub Flow
GitFlow
Electronic_Ad5607@reddit
Yeah same
pebble-prophet@reddit
Go through job postings for entry level full stack developer jobs and you will get your answer.
adiberk@reddit
There is no such a thing as a junior full stack in my opinion. But yeah - expect notbing
Hospitalics@reddit
What projects have you done? What kinds of projects interest you? Willing to have a chat with you if you want to know more.
DamionDreggs@reddit
Not much.
I expect that a junior claiming to be full stack is in over their heads and well on their way to burnout within six months.
To survive they will need a lot of mentoring and correction from a senior.
angetenarost@reddit
Saving
FanAccomplished2399@reddit
Here is the breakdown for different levels:
Junior engineers are expected to complete well defined tasks. This means guidance is provided from other engineers. You are expected to ask questions and make sure you are not stuck.
Mid level engineers are expected to complete projects. They are given a product requirement document and should deliver the project from start to finish.
Senior engineers are expected to lead multiple projects. They should have cross team impact and mentor other engineers.
Big_Combination9890@reddit
FYI from someone overseeing devs on all levels, this is also expected from senior developers.
It is also expected from executives on all levels, and I'm pretty sure if the God Emperor of Mankind in his aspect as the Deus Mechanicus was blessing our company with his divine presence, I'd expecting him to ask questions as well.
Not asking questions when things are unclear or someone needs help, is one of the worst things and one of the biggest time-wasters possible.
knivesmissingno@reddit
Jr dev experience can vary from very structured to sink or swim depending on the company.
What i would say is that you should be able to take some time to understand the existing code base and be able to contribute to it. Tasks are probably gonna be small at first, change a button, add an endpoint, etc etc. Eventually you work your way up to building out entire features or even architecture work.
I would personally suggest contributing to an open source project. If you've only ever built projects alone, you might be surprised how different programming with others can be.