[Road to Job] #2 Learning Roadmap
Tags: career, beginners, webdev, codenewbie
Published: 2020-12-28 22:23:21

#Introduction#

I will try my best to keep these short and sweet because no one wants to read an essay😅

After much research(aka scouring reddit) I have determined my plan of action to learn to code and become a __Full Stack Developer__.

For me, I like to have some structure to my learning and I also like to build __strong foundations__ because I believe knowledge is built like a pyramid.

#The Plan#

Firstly, I have already spent way too much money on an EE degree and I was looking for the best way to learn for __FREE__.

###1) First Language###

For the record, I had learned _C_ as my first language so I did have a good base to jump off from. However, through much research, I found that _Javascript_ was the key language in the web, _Python_ was a popular language that way easy to learn and _Java_ was the best to start with because it will teach you _Object Oriented Programming_ as well as give you a strong understanding of the basics. Also, it is a great general purpose language that can be used in Android, Web and Desktop apps. Lastly, I picked Java because 2 temporarily free courses were taught in Java(you will see below).

###2) Codecademy###

I started with completing the free Java track but __I would not recommend__ wasting time doing that...maybe the paid is better...but I wouldn't know😋

###3) Java Programming 1 and 2 MOOC###
(https://java-programming.mooc.fi/)

Found this through reddit and it was highly recommended everywhere you look....and for good reason too! I am currently on Part 5 and I find it absolutely amazing to learn Java inside out and get you off to a good start.

###4) Algorithms and Data Structures###

Algorithms, Part I - https://www.coursera.org/learn/algorithms-part1?edocomorp=free-courses-high-school&ranMID=40328&ranEAID=EHFxW6yx8Uo&ranSiteID=EHFxW6yx8Uo-xAEM.U5bQn0EwOUUmqyF.g&siteID=EHFxW6yx8Uo-xAEM.U5bQn0EwOUUmqyF.g&utm_content=10&utm_medium=partners&utm_source=linkshare&utm_campaign=EHFxW6yx8Uo

Algorithms, Part II - https://www.coursera.org/learn/algorithms-part2?edocomorp=free-courses-high-school&ranMID=40328&ranEAID=EHFxW6yx8Uo&ranSiteID=EHFxW6yx8Uo-eSelmt67af7Gz_7CNUfeww&siteID=EHFxW6yx8Uo-eSelmt67af7Gz_7CNUfeww&utm_content=10&utm_medium=partners&utm_source=linkshare&utm_campaign=EHFxW6yx8Uo

Taught by Princeton University and __FREE until December 31st to enroll__!
They also have some other courses that is free because of COVID so check it out!

###5) Jetbrains Academy for Projects###

Now everyone says practice is the most important and I was fortunate enough to sign up for this back when they had the free promotion...it ends at the end of 2020 unfortunately😭

However, they essentially teach you the topics you need to do a project and break the project into parts. Basically, it is __project based learning__ for Java, Python and Javascript, etc.

So I will be using it to practice with projects.

###6) Spring and Spring Boot###

If you are using Java and interested in building web apps, you have heard of _Spring_. The best way I found to learn this must of a framework is:

https://www.udemy.com/course/spring-hibernate-tutorial/

###7) Databases###

_SQL_ is another must learn thing as a developer when working with Databases and I found another great course to learn this on udemy:

https://www.udemy.com/course/the-ultimate-mysql-bootcamp-go-from-sql-beginner-to-expert/

###8) Now to learn the WEB###

At this point, I hope to have some strong foundations in coding but need to learn the web! Mainly the holy grail of _HTML, CSS and Javascript_.

Some things you might have heard are things like React, Angular, Node, etc. So many things to learn! Where to start? 

I was thinking of a bootcamp but then I found 2 great __FREE__, self learning programs so I figure I'll give them a shot.

- __The Odin Project__
(https://www.theodinproject.com/)

_Learn the basics of the internet, HTML, CSS, Javascript, Node.js, Ruby and Ruby on Rails._

- __Full Stack Open__
(https://fullstackopen.com/en/)

_Learn React, Redux, Node.js, MongoDB, GraphQL, TypeScript, REST APIs, etc._

###9) Coding Bootcamp###

If I complete all of the above and have a difficult time finding a job...I figure I will jump into a coding bootcamp to build my skills further but MAINLY to expand __my network__ as many bootcamps have connections with companies in the local area to help me get my start.

Your network is your net worth as they say.

NOTE: I have done a lot of research into that for my local area as well so I'll make a post about my findings and which school I would choose in a later post.

#Conclusion#

I hope you get something out of this learning path and if you have any recommendations to adjust this path, I would LOVE to hear it!
All love and all positivity to anyone who is on this journey as well.

Let's get to work.
Dev of Myth