There are distinct and unique ways available to showcase your programming skills. One of them is contributing to open-source projects. By contributing here you also learn from industry experts and your work gets reviewed by them. You can also answer queries on Stack Overflow as there is a score maintained there that you can show to your employers. Another way is to write articles or blogs on programming. This will show your employer that you have the knowledge required for the job. You can also collaborate with your friends in other industries to create something unique.