Seattle Full-Stack Website Developer
A full-Stack Seattle website developer is an I.T. professional with a complete technical profile. They know how to efficiently work with the Front End and Back End of an application. In web development, the Front End is the user interface (UI) layer. It’s the information, images, buttons, and other elements that the user sees on a web page. On the other hand, if the user interacts with the information on the web page, a database will be needed. The Back End is where the manipulation of information occurs. Besides working within these layers, a Full Stack Developer must know server architecture and systems. He can oversee a whole project. His tasks range from mounting servers to designing with CSS.
In other words, Full-Stack web developers understand everything in the application lifecycle, from concept through delivery of an integrated solution. It sounds like they have gathered all this knowledge through school and experience. They must likely have successful careers. No one can’t become Full-Stack developers overnight. So, what do we need to learn to become Full Stack Developers? What skills do we need? How do we get these skills?
Education
In the first place, to become successful in any career, we will need some education. It’s easier to land a Software Developer job if we have the right credentials, just by searching for web developers' job postings online. We will see that most companies require a bachelor’s degree in computer science or a related field. Some of them won’t even look at our resume if we don’t have this requirement.
However, I.T. related jobs are expected to grow 13 percent from 2016 to 2026 (United States Department of Labor, 2019). This is faster than any other occupation. I constantly hear more software developer jobs in the market than adequate people for these positions. That’s why web development and coding schools are becoming popular. They offer a shorter path to become a Software Engineer. There are many to choose from. You can even take your classes 100% online. Lambda School offers that they will charge you for tuition only until you land a high-paying job.
Similarly, high-ranked tech companies are partnering with Colleges, Universities, and specialized institutions. They want to train students with the proper tech skills to fit these jobs. The Red Hat Academy is training people with up-to-date content and lab experience (USA Today, 2017). This sounds like a pretty good deal. A certification from a high-tech company is a great way to shift your career.
Another way to get skilled is to train by yourself. The chances that you get a software developer job this way are lower. But it is possible. There are many free tutorials and all kinds of resources online that can help you learn how to code. No matter what your education is, you will still have to prove your abilities to the employer. They call it the coding interview. They will ask you to code a solution to a particular problem. Your code not only has to run without errors. It has to be efficient, and it must pass all the tests.
To pass your coding interview, you could train in pages like hackerrank.com. In this platform, you can find coding challenges for many programming languages. They will help you to get ready for your interview.
Skills Needed
The skills that a Full Stack Web Developer must have been changing over the years. Take this image, for example.
It is clear that now more knowledge is required. There is much to learn. A bachelor’s degree is not enough. Companies are looking for wizards. If you read the job description for a full stack developer position, the list of required skills is long. Most of them are acquired through years of experience. It is hard to keep track of the latest technology trends. A new version of programing languages, updates, tools sees the light every day. Every I.T. professional must keep his knowledge updated. As for now, the following are five technologies that a full-stack developer must master.
JavaScript
To begin with, this is the most popular programing language in the world. JavaScript is mainly used for its constant updates and launch of new tools and frameworks. It has versatility. It can be used as a Back End, Front End, and Full Stack language, in addition to its server-side operation. This makes it the preferred language for a full-stack developer. It is essential to master the high-level functions, event delegation, closure, prototyping, and composition of functions.
Databases
Second, in software development, a database is necessary to access information. As a Back-End skill, a Full Stack Developer must know about databases. Everybody is talking about big data now. But traditional databases as SQL Server, Oracle are still a must. A good Full Stack developer will master all the aspects of one database engine. But he can also work with at least two more databases. But this is not all. A server-side scripting language is also needed. Java, Python, Ruby are in the top 5 right now.
GIT
Angular developers make special use of GIT. This tool allows you to work in teams and monitor any changes made to the code. Git is the ultimate tool for team collaboration and source control. It enables you to save your work on a central repository. It keeps versions of your files, so it's easy to go back to an earlier version of your code. Most Tech companies use GIT and Open Source projects like Microsoft or Linux. It’s something every developer needs to master.
HTML / CSS
Up to the present time, HTML websites and CSS are the main Front-End components. Here is where Web Development starts. CSS will help you with the style and design of the Web Page. Meanwhile, HTML is in charge of defining the structure and content of the Web Page. When you combine these two technologies with JavaScript, you get what they call Dynamic HTML. With DHTML, you can build a fully interactive and dynamic website. It’s what the Front-End is all about.
Be that as it may, DHTML may not be enough. Many other technologies derive from HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. Companies are looking to hire a developer acrobat that knows all of them. It's common to find open job positions that ask for knowledge of CSS preprocessors like SASS or LESS. Bootstrap is a big plus too. It's just a library with prebuilt CSS classes that make the design process easier.
Finally, in the DHTML world, we can find the JavaScript Frameworks. Here are some of them: jQuery, VU.js, ReactJS, AngularJS, Node.js, Backbone.js, etc. To name a few. Pick one and master it.
Server-Side Scripting Language
Additionally, there is still one more ingredient to the programing language salad. On the server-side is where the real action happens. It connects the Front-End with the Back-End. It handles all the logic. Some time ago was called the business logic layer. Some Server-Side programming languages connect better with a database from the same company, like C# with SQL Server from Microsoft. Oracle Corporation owns Java and MySQL. When it comes to Python, the most common databases to store its web app data are PostgreSQL and MySQL.
You will choose your preferred programing language depending on your environment. The people you hang out with can also tilt the balance to one side. If you do a quick search online, you will see that python is the most popular server-side scripting language of the moment. Suppose you are a computer geek. You most likely have your programming language chosen. Feel free to explore. They all have pros and cons. Pick the one you feel most comfortable with.
Experience.
Besides learning all these programming languages, you will need experience. All job postings ask for at least several years of experience. They know that only practice makes perfect. We can’t become Full Stack Developers overnight and to start with a software or web design agency is always a plus. If you are starting in the software development world, you will be lucky to land an internship first. From that moment on, you will only grow. You will learn new skills with time. You will learn from your colleagues and people more experienced than you.
Important to realize that there is always someone reading and learning the new tech trends. It’s a good idea that you do your own research too. There is always a way to do something better. All systems and applications always evolve. New versions see the light every day. Take Amazon, for example. They are growing fast. They keep adding services to their platform. I am sure that their developers have gathered a bunch of new skills working for them. This happens in most companies. New challenges will arise at work. They are chances to prove yourself.
As with any other job, if you excel at what you do, people will trust you. They will give you more responsibilities that will lead to promotions. This means that you will be learning new things. You will be on a path to become a professional with a complete technical profile. Whether it's local marketing and SEO or coding, time and experience are a necessity.
Let’s wrap up
As can be seen, becoming a Full Stack Developer can take some time. Is It Worth the effort? Information Technology jobs are the highest paid in the United States. The median annual wage was $86,320.00 in May 2018. This is way higher than any other occupation. All other jobs combined have a median annual wage of $38,640. (United States Department of Labor, 2019)
But the average salary for a Full Stack Developer is even higher than the median annual wage of the I.T. jobs. They are making on average… drumroll… $110,500.00 annually.
Obviously, that sounds like a dream job. The feeling of seeing your work in action is amazing. I’ve been lucky enough to work as a web developer back. With hard work and patience, anyone can become a full-stack developer!
