How to Become a Software Engineer & Get Hired | Zero To Mastery (2024)

Anyone who wants a clear step-by-step guide to become a Software Engineer from scratch and actually get hired. Oh ya, and you don't want to waste your money on overpriced bootcamps and degrees.

Also, let's be honest. Some of the topics can be a little dry. So, we're even going to have a bit of fun along the way. No way! Crazy right?!

This Software Engineer Career Path is perfect for you if:

• You're a complete beginner (of any age!) and want a full bootcamp + CS Degree curriculum and experience without having to pay $1,000s
• You don't want to waste your valuable time. You want to learn everything needed to become a Software Engineer in one place
• You want to build real-world, full-scale projects that will push you, challenge you and make your portfolio and resume stand out
• You don't want to learn and take this journey alone. You will learn alongside 100s of other students at your same level and 1,000s more that are just a few steps ahead of you
• You can handle our amazing sense of humour (it's not spelled wrong, we're Canadian... see what we mean... you've been warned)

And it's definitely for you if you're sick of:

• Outdated coding tutorials
• Free courses and tutorials that don't go beyond the basics
• Learning topics and concepts that are mostly irrelevant in the real-world and don't even get asked in interviews
• Courses with no community or support system
• Tutorial hell
• Feeling like you're going in circles with no clear path or end in sight

Let's be 100% clear. You aren't going to do 100 coding challenges or 50 projects or learn topics that aren't going to get you hired or even be used in the real-world. That's a waste of your time.

The sooner you get hired, the sooner you'll be learning more than you can from any course. That's our goal.

Everyone has their own reason(s) as to why they want to become a Software Engineer. But here are a few of the best reasons:

1. Lots of jobs available. As we're writing this, there are over 140,000 Software Engineer jobs available on Glassdoor (not to mention Linkedin, Indeed or elsewhere). And it isn't going to slow down. From 2019-2029, Software Developer job growth is projected to be 22% (vs. ~4% for all jobs). More demand for technology means more demand for Developers.
2. High demand = High salary. The average annual salary for a Software Engineer in the United States is over $99,000 across all levels (entry-level to senior). This amount can also be much higher at major tech companies like Google, Amazon, Facebook and others.
3. No degree required. It's possible to get hired as a Software Engineer at the company of your dreams without having any college degree. Historically, you needed a Computer Science degree to get hired as a Software Engineer but times are changing. Many companies, including Google, no long require you to have a CS degree.
4. Work remotely. Many Software Engineering jobs are remote. Work from the comfort of your own home, a coffee shop or even while travelling the world. Some roles even allow you to work on your own schedule.
5. It's fun. And rewarding. You get to have a real-world impact. The work you're doing on a daily basis can have a huge impact on hundreds, thousands, or even millions of people. You also get fast feedback loops on your work. Within minutes you can make a change to a website or app and your Mom could see it live in the real-world. How cool is that!

Everyone is different. So it's hard to give a specific amount of time. The two biggest variables are the number of hours per week you're dedicating to completing the steps in the Career Path and your current experience level.

Don't hold us to it but here's a rough guideline based on feedback we've received from past ZTM students on how long it takes to become a Software Engineer:

1. 20-40 hours a week = 4-6 months. Students who have started from scratch as complete beginners (no matter their age!) and spend a few hours per day.
2. 40-80 hours a week = 2-3 months. Students who are able to learn basically full-time and/or already have some experience (ex: CS students / Coding Bootcamp grads).
3. 0-10 hours a week = 7-12+ months. Students from all experience levels but are only able to dedicate a few hours a week.

The ZTM Discord is our exclusive online community for ZTM students, alumni, TAs and instructors.

How it helps you, short version: Increase the chances that ZTM students achieve their current goals and help them continue to grow throughout their career.

Longer version: Learning alone is hard. We've all been there. We've all tried to learn new skills and struggled. It can be frustrating, daunting, and just plain challenging, especially if you're trying to change careers.

We feel strongly that the Zero To Mastery Discord community is an essential part of the learning experience and greatly increases the chances for students to achieve their goals.

It's crazy to think that Colleges and Coding Bootcamps charge you tens of thousands of dollars to provide you with this type of experience. It doesn't have to be that way!

In fact, ~20% of ZTM students are also enrolled at a College or in-person Coding Bootcamp but feel like they just aren't getting all of the skills and support they need. But with ZTM, they do.

Within the Zero To Mastery Discord community, you can:

• Connect with other Developers, Engineers, Data Scientists, Designers
• Form study groups and complete ZTM Career Paths and Courses together
• Ask questions and get advice from other people at your same level as well as more experienced professionals
• Get feedback on projects
• Meet other students around the world (and likely even someone from your hometown!)
• Learn how to answer questions and help other students which will accelerate your own learning
• Get help from others with questions and exercises
• Work on coding challenges and real-world open-source projects with other students

It’s pretty awesome to see many ZTM alumni also active every single day, continuing to engage with the community, give back, and level up their own skills and career.

A computer (Windows/Mac/Linux) and access to the internet. That's it! No previous experience is needed.

If you haven't already, take our tech career path quiz. We'll give you our recommendation for which path is the best fit for you.

Career Paths are like a full College curriculum. Our Career Paths give you the exact courses, workshops, challenges, articles and actions to take to go from absolute beginner to getting hired.

Career Paths start with ensuring you know the foundations from scratch. But they go far beyond by teaching you advanced topics and non-technical skills that are essential for your career but aren't taught in Computer Science Degrees or Coding Bootcamps.

Courses are more focused. Different courses have different goals. Some courses are a great fit for experienced Developers, Engineers and Programmers who want to level-up their skills in a specific topic or framework. Other courses cover a wider range of topics teaching the foundations and fundamentals for beginners.