What type of coding should I learn?

Depends on lots of things: why you live, what your interests are, what your skills are.

Given a economics/business background, I would hope on the data science bandwagon, and suggest Python and R (first python, then R)...assuming that econ background came with a solid math education?

Of course, if you are in NYC and have the math background, then maybe C++ might be appropriate (you might need more than 2 years, though).

If your heart is set on Web, don't let things deter you. It won't all get outsourced. But it's such a wide field, you'll need to pick your poison: javascript, php, ruby, python, java...or the non-programming or slight programming stuff like css, wordpress, etc.

There's no one good single answer. You might need to play around with several things, then pick what really resonates with you. In that case, I suggest you start with Python.

Did a bit of math but only 1st year - averaged in the 80s.

I do like the design (development) as you see your projects come alive. I also really like writing and content creation.

If you want a job, Java is #1 these days.

Just want to do something interesting and engaging. I care less about money and more about doing something interesting.

My job now is pretty chill and pays 64k but is boring and I have a TON of time on the side.

I was in very similar shoes just about two and a half years ago. I've been a "web developer" for almost two years now, and I absolutely love it. Pay is way better than what I was doing before, even this early in the process, and job security and opportunities to advance are all over the place.

I do HTML/CSS, JavaScript, PHP, and MySQL.

I work at a company where we outsource some of the dev work, but there are still tons and tons of advantages to having someone onsite and/or someone with better language and cultural understanding, etc. There's no way enough dev work is gonna get outsourced to seriously hurt job prospects around here.

My recommendation: codecademy. Start working through (free) tutorials. Something like this order:

1. HTML/CSS

2. JavaScript

3. jQuery

4. Python

5. Command line

6. Git

7. SQL

Then you could keep going with PHP, Ruby, whatever. I started with Python, but then switched to PHP when I was applying for a job that required PHP...and got the job.

You changed my quote!

I said "No SQL" db's are a gimmick, not Big Data as a whole.

The OP was asking about a coding language, and some companies believe they can do everything without a SQL developer.

The truth is, there will always be data to be herded. The idea that you don't need someone who knows SQL is misguided. Companies will always need someone to manipulate databases at a base level. SQL will be prevalent for a very long time.

Hey man this sounds awesome,

Best answer yet!

What did you do before you started learning code? How long from when you started learning until you got a job? How old are you?

Would love to pick your brain a little more if I could.

TheAnswerGuy wrote:

The correct answer: SQL (Microsoft BI Stack or Oracle)

Data will never go away. There is high demand for SQL programmers as well as DBA's if your not smart enough to be a programmer.

Don't let "No SQL" databases scare you away, it's a gimmick.

Good money and lots of opportunity.

You're welcome.

Had a placement year at Oracle last year using SQL and PL/SQL

Said they could either hire 1 person in the UK for the job full time or 6 Indians

drcode wrote:

What did you do before you started learning code? How long from when you started learning until you got a job? How old are you?

Would love to pick your brain a little more if I could.

Sure. I'm 32. I had done a few things before, but most recently it was marketing/writing for a few years.

Now, I wasn't starting completely from scratch with codecademy – I had taken a couple college courses, and I'd done some smaller freelance projects and such. Working in marketing, I'd edited content in Wordpress, Drupal, etc., and found I was drawn to the code side of things whenever there was an opportunity. So that was mostly HTML/CSS, but occasionally JavaScript/jQuery, and then rarely PHP (digging into the backend of Wordpress and Drupal).

Codecademy helps with the code itself – which is really most of the job – but there's a gap in terms of understanding how the pieces fit together broadly. I felt like I was able to learn that part fairly quickly on the job, though. And just reading conceptual articles helps.

drcode wrote:

How long from when you started learning until you got a job?

My actual codecademy time was just a few months, while working full-time, and plenty busy with life stuff. Codecademy was fun – kinda addicting.

But yeah, I had a pretty decent background already that had been gradually building over the course of a few years.

I do think you can learn A LOT pretty painlessly with codecademy, but you'll need to find something more than that, like build something in the wild or take a real class, just to sort of solidify things.

Drcode wrote:

Thinking straight up front end web dev becoming too outsourced.

What would be most in demand? I have 30k and 2 years to educate myself (currently work 15 hours a week)

I have a degree in economics - practical business experience as a manager and have a good grasp on English language as well so perhaps I could do well with web dev?

Thoughts from any currently in the industry?

Python, .Net and general SQL is a good place starting out.

"1. HTML/CSS

2. JavaScript

3. jQuery

4. Python

5. Command line

6. Git

7. SQL"

I can't fault this list, but if you have no code experience and want to eventually code, then I'd start with an actual language. So I might push python to the top. You could also learn javascript first, but you are better off if you already know html/css first before javascript.

mediocresprinter wrote:

Had a placement year at Oracle last year using SQL and PL/SQL

Said they could either hire 1 person in the UK for the job full time or 6 Indians

Gotta love the false equivalence here. 1 person on site, who speaks the language, who understands the culture, who gets the requirements, who can be vetted with regard to education and background. 6 Indians who took a 3 week bootcamp, can barely communicate, and won't ever get anything done. (Loads of experience here gives me confidence to absolutely guarantee that final fact.)

The kinds of people you get for ultra cheap tend to be worth even less than what you pay for them. There's a reason they're ultra cheap. A very skilled developer friend of mine recently moved back to India from the northeastern US and took only a very slight pay cut. It turns out that good developers there are worth just as much as good developers here, and the market is just as competitive.

If you have an econ degree, the right answer is to NOT be a developer, but be a data scientist with a focus on econometrics. Go to Wall Street and make bank.

Now, to do that, I'd recommend two things:

1) Get a MS in CS from GA Tech. Yes, I just told you to not be a developer, but this is a great deal and will give you the skills you need to be great at obtaining, cleansing and transforming data. Cost is approx $7K.

https://www.omscs.gatech.edu/

2) Go to General Assembly and take their Data Science course. Cost is $4K.

https://generalassemb.ly/education/data-science

You could learn the same skills going to Udacity, Coursera, etc., but these courses will force you to do the work on time. I'd suggest that you actually try some of the courses online to see if they're interesting to you. Then commit to the above.

Don't just learn a language like python. And, for the love of god, ignore the guy who said to learn SQL and big data is a farce.

Now that you have these skills, you gotta network and find a gig, preferably in Financial Services. Move up to Wall Street and make $$$.

You're welcome...

Thanks I am 31 so basically identical. Also have a bit of a background in technical writing and CMS and have messed around with HTML and CSS a bit. My job is totally unrelated though (teacher) How do you feel about sitting at a computer all day though? I would say, without a doubt, this is the only thing keeping me from jumping in headfirst.

drcode wrote:

My job is totally unrelated though (teacher)

haha, I was a teacher a few years ago.

drcode wrote:

How do you feel about sitting at a computer all day though?

1. I run pretty much every day during my "lunch" break

2. Flexible schedule, so I leave around 3 a couple days a week and volunteer assistant coach – basically go run with the kids. (If I was hardcore, I could go to practice every day I guess, but that would be a lot of really early mornings...)

3. I regularly wander around the office, get snacks/tea, chat with friends in other departments, etc.

Basically, it doesn't bother me at all. I think I like it better than all the standing I did as a teacher.

I'm a graduating senior from a solid CS program with a signed offer for 125k salary 60k stock, and 15k signing bonus. Learn one of C/C++/C#/Python/Java/Go/Ruby/Javascript. Doesn't really matter which you go with. Pick up the cracking the coding interview book. Play around, do interesting projects and contribute to open source. Once you pick up a language or two the others become easier to learn. Learn one of the functional languages (Haskell, LISP/Scheme, OCaml).

HTML and CSS aren't really programming languages in the same sense as the rest of these. The hard part is in the logic.

Try and take as many internships as you can if you're able.

Outsourcing isn't really much of a concern to me, and the advent of AWS/Azure/GCP should make anyone currently doing pure ops or networking a little nervous.

XML is the future, bro.

Jobs Jobs Jobs wrote:

If you want a job, Java is #1 these days.

In Hyderabad.