So, you have just finished your coding bootcamp, got your degree or built your very own web application and you think you’re ready to conquer the software engineering world. You go over to Glints, apply for a software engineering job and demand a 5k starting salary.

The interview process

If you pass the initial Resume screening, you may be sent a 1-hour HackerRank test, but as soon as you open it, the only thing that comes out of your mouth is WTF. Pursuing a career in software engineering is never easy, although you can create a website, interviews tend to focus heavily on data structures and algorithms.

Another scenario you might end up in, is that the employer gives you a take home assignment, where you have to create a mini web application to demonstrate your skills. If you have the mindset that you should not create things for free, or if you think the company is going to use what you write, then software engineering is not for you. If the company ends up using what you write, you shouldn’t join that company.

It is important to understand that after building your first web application, that you have only manage to scrape tip of the iceberg. Your learning journey have just begun and there is much, much more, for you to learn. That is why I am writing a blog to share my experience with those who are starting their software engineering careers.

What's next?

If you enjoy reading my content or just find the articles particularly interesting, feel free to continue reading, I will try to release an article every Monday for your entertainment. These articles will include various software engineering principles with examples so that when the interviewer talks about it, you can happily join the conversation.

The intended audience for these articles are junior to mid-level software engineers, so don't expect examples to be super complex as the focus will mainly be on monoliths. In theory, you should be trying to master these concepts as junior developer before you can be classified as a mid-level developer. However, being an interviewer myself, I find that even some mid-level developers struggle to grasp these concepts. This is why I firmly believe that in your early career, salary is something that you should not be looking out for, it is more important to join a company that will mentor you and teach you the right way to code.

What will the content be about?

The articles that I will be writing will not be focused on how to pass HackerRank. The only way to dominate these HackerRank test is to practice. Go to the website and try solving the different problems. In general, my advice to you is that in order to meet the time complexity requirements, your solutions must be O(n log n) and below. Anything that is above O(n²), you will not be obtaining full marks.

Instead, the articles that I will be writing will be focused on the different software engineering concepts with examples on how to apply them. These concepts will typically come in handy during your 1 on 1 interviews or in your take home assignments where your code is doing the talking. To give you all a glimpse of what is to come, here are the upcoming articles that I will be releasing in the following weeks:

1. Join the Scrum
2. It's Story Time
3. Single source of truth

If you are my hard core fan, you can check out the following AirBnB repository and Goal Setting repository that I will be using as examples. These are by far a finished products. I will enhance it as and when the content asks for it. Pardon me as I have a full time job and a part time teaching job. Unfortunately, this is it for now. Hope to see you join the Scrum!

Last Updated: 14/02/2022