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henrikdk
8,935 PointsExperiences getting job after Treehouse? Any Scandinavians?
Greetings Treehouse community! This will be my first post here and I am very happy to be here.
I have been working in IT for about 17 year now, in various roles, but I am new to programming. I'm turning 40 soon and have a strong urge to make a career change to software development soon, so I will have time to build experience and make a career for myself in the new profession.
I am considering two options and hope to hear some opinions:
1) Masters degree in Game Design. This is the only university education, I can get into because of complications relating to my past education. Boring story, really. I would end up with a "Master of Science in Information Technology", which sounds fancy and looks good, on paper. But it would take 2 years and the content learned would be less relevant to a general programming job outside the game industry.
2) I take anything from a half to a whole year off and go through the Full Stack JavaScript Techdegree plus a lot of Java, Spring, REST and related classes. I end up with something that I am not sure the industry knows in Denmark, but it would give me much more useful knowledge.
The question is, then.... which will get me where I am going most efficiently? What are people's experiences? Am I going to get a job more easily with 1 or 2?
If any Danes, Swedes or Norwegians here would be able to share their experiences of getting a job, without a traditional university education behind them, that would be a bonus.
Thanks in advance for any replies!
5 Answers
Jamie Reardon
Treehouse Project ReviewerJust adding a resource related to your question:
https://teamtreehouse.com/stories
You can see students success stories and where they are from here. Regarding Scandinavian countries, I noticed a Swedish student there.
UPDATE: As I glanced through it again myself, I noticed a student from Norway: https://teamtreehouse.com/stories/justin-lefurjah
henrikdk
8,935 PointsThanks for the links, Jamie! I'll go through some of the stories and see what people's experiences are.
I forgot to mention, that in Denmark, education is free, in most cases (in truth, just paid through taxes). I see you are from UK (and speak Norwegian. Bare hyggelig! :)). Maybe it is the same in the UK...
I think that free education makes it less common to see people taking online educations, such as Treehouse. But for me, it just makes a lot more sense to be able to cut out all, that I find irrelevant. I'm just not sure if a Techdegree, for example, will land me a job in Denmark, if noone know what it is. But I'll read through some stories and hopefully find the answer I'm looking for.
Thanks for the feedback!
Jamie Reardon
Treehouse Project ReviewerYou're welcome! My girlfriend is Norwegian and she told me about the education being free there too. However, it's not the same for the UK :P
Probably true, however the convenience of being able to study at your own pace is great. I agree about getting straight to the point on the learning curve of things and not waste time learning things you don't want to.
Good luck!
stjarnan
Front End Web Development Techdegree Graduate 56,488 PointsHi Henrik,
First of - great advice from Jamie Reardon!
I live in Sundsvall, Sweden, and education is as you might know free here too. I wasn't eligible for the university in Sweden and would have to study pre-university courses for about 2 years before becoming eligible for the degree I wanted to take. This was not an option for me, I just couldn't motivate myself to go through it.
So I found Treehouse, finished the Front End Techdegree and landed a job one month after finishing. To keep it short you can read about it here: https://blog.teamtreehouse.com/become-a-software-engineer-jonas
My advice for you would be to figure out which route you believe would work best for you. Regarding what skills to go for, you could browse job boards in your area to see what companies are looking for (JavaScript, .Net or Java? Python perhaps?) - that way you can learn the skills your area is looking for and have an easier time when you start job hunting. When you have decided, Treehouse is definitely going to have courses on the subject!
I do recommend Techdegrees for that matter, not many companies know of them here but when they see what you learn during a one they will not mind it being an online course.
If you have any questions, feel free to ask and I'll do my best to help you!
Best regards, Jonas
Jamie Reardon
Treehouse Project ReviewerGoing a little off-topic here.
Amazing story and well done Jonas.
As a previous student yourself, how did you approach the learning material? Did you start and finish all of your studies through the techdegree? Or did you start as a pro student for example, and move onto the techdegree?
I am in a similar situation that you were in previously, I would have to study pre-university to actually get into university . So, once I found Treehouse I was impressed and built hopes of changing my career all round.
As a graduate of Treehouse, do you have any advice to give a current student how to learn the Front End Web Development track through self studies?
Cheers, Jamie.
stjarnan
Front End Web Development Techdegree Graduate 56,488 PointsGreat question Jamie!
I actually started on the Basic subscription, and when I had somewhere around 3000-5000 points I got the chance to join the Techdegree beta. I had finished the Web Design track and was somewhere around 50-60% finished with the Front End Web Development Track.
Regarding advice on how to learn during the Front End Web Development track. I went through the courses but never created anything because I wasn't "good enough" according to myself. This is one of the great perks of the Techdegree's - they force you to start working on projects. Working on projects is when you really learn what you have been taught. So start your own projects after finishing a course, it doesn't have to be useful or big. Just use your new skills and they will stick.
You will improve and your projects will improve with you. A couple of months down the line you might even have something to show to employers. You can do this!
Feel free to ask more questions or tag me whenever you feel like it.
I hope that helps, Jonas
henrikdk
8,935 PointsThanks for the replies, guys! It is much appreciated. I'll likely have lots of questions, further down the line. At the moment, though, I have plenty of things to figure out on my own! Thanks for sharing your thoughts. :) Cheers Henrik
Jamie Reardon
Treehouse Project ReviewerThanks for the really great reply Jonas! You have gave me a lot of confidence and motivation to achieve my goals! I have even decided to jump right into the techdegree now as I feel like I am in the same boat when it comes to finishing individual courses on the FEWD track that I just don't know where to begin with making a project!
Thanks for your support and I wish you the best in your future!
stjarnan
Front End Web Development Techdegree Graduate 56,488 PointsI am glad you feel that way, Jamie!
I wish you the best of luck, and remember, you can do this!
You can find my LinkedIn profile in my Treehouse profile, feel free to connect with me. If you ever have any more questions you could easily reach me with a private message there!
Regards, Jonas
Jamie Reardon
Treehouse Project ReviewerThanks a lot Jonas! I will message you if I ever feel stuck and if I could use your expertise (if not busy of course).