7 Ways to Prove Your Programming Skills
By: Shafi Rizvi
Tags: Productivity, Technology, Software Development, Startup, Programming

Tips to Prove Your Talent

1. Contribute to open source projects

What is so special about open source contribution? Well, there is a lot. But what I found interesting is that you learn from the experts in the industry. Not all your contributions to an open source project will be accepted. This sounds bad, but it’s not.

Any contribution to the project will be reviewed by an expert before it’s merged into the actual project. Whenever you make a contribution, if there is any improvement to be made, you’ll get feedback with some guidance on exactly how to do it. It’s like someone mentoring you on how to improve your coding.

Apart from this, you also can learn a lot more of the skills required by a software engineer, such as meeting people with the same interests as you, learning people skills, etc.

If you have made any open source contribution, that’s a massive plus point to prove your talent and a sure way to impress the interviewer.

Here is a guide to how to contribute to open source projects.

2. Answer Questions on Stack Overflow

Stack Overflow is any programmer’s best pal. Whenever a programmer encounters a problem in coding, probably the first thing they do is find an answer on Stack Overflow. But wouldn’t it be great if you could answer questions on the technologies that you’re fluent in and earn some reputation?

Stack Overflow has a reputation associated with each account. Whenever you answer a question, based on the quality and accuracy of your answer, people can vote for you, which in turn will increase your reputation score. This score is a great way for employers to assess your talent since the score is generated by one of the best programming communities.

Here is a guide to how to answer questions on stack overflow.

3. Score on HackerRank, LeetCode, and GeeksforGeeks

HackerRank, LeetCode, and GeeksforGeeks are some great sites to improve your coding skills by solving different types of challenges. You can use your preferred programming language to solve problems. You also can select your own topic to practice with the desired level of difficulty. For example, you can select a problem related to arrays with the required difficulty level and start solving.

Based on the way you solved, you’ll be rewarded with a score. These scores will help to depict your talent in problem-solving, the use of algorithms, and data structures, etc.

4. Try out new projects

Coming up with creative ideas and developing your own projects is a nice way to try out what you have learnt so far. You might have learned various technologies and languages following various tutorials, but if you are unable to build a program, website, or a mobile app on your own, then your effort has gone in vain.

A web app about yourself, a to-do list app, or a weather tracking app are a few projects you can try out while you are free. These will not only improve your coding skills, but you also can use them in your day-to-day life.

5. Write articles

Writing articles is a great way to express your passion towards what you love. Writing requires knowledge of what you write. Whenever you write something, you tend to study and do a small amount of research on what you are about to write. This helps to improve your knowledge to a great extent.

It would be great if you can write articles on topics other than programming, as well. You don’t have to write specific things related to other fields, but you could write something generic, adding some technical aspects that will show that you have some basic knowledge in other fields, too. Additionally, it’s a way to exhibit your written communication skills, which is a requirement most programmers lack.

6. Collaborate with your friends in various other fields

As I mentioned in the beginning, the fourth industrial revolution has made almost all fields incorporate technology into their products and services. Even software companies are moving to niche markets rather than developing generic software. There are software companies specialising in finance, agriculture, transportation, food, and whatnot.

Collaborating with your friends in other fields, engaging in a few projects related to their field, and contributing to some technical aspect, would be great plus points for you. For instance, you could collaborate with a friend in the field of agriculture, where they might need an app to track the weather or something similar.

7. Show that you are passionate by what you share on social media

Do not be surprised if your employer has a look at your social media accounts. I agree that social media is to have fun and enjoy your leisure time. And I am not trying to tell you to stop having fun on social media.

But wouldn’t it be great if you could show your enthusiasm by what you share? Maybe you can try sharing memes related to programming and technical stuff. You can also share articles and videos on trending topics that people would love to read.