Let’s talk about the skills you need to become a web developer. Web development is generally broken down into two areas: front-end development and back-end development, and then full-stack development, which is a combination of both.
Front-end development is all about what the user sees and interacts with. It’s the website in your browser or the app on your mobile phone or tablet. Back-end development handles everything behind the scenes, like data processing, storage, and logic. You can start on either end, but if you’re starting out and pursuing a career in web development, I recommend you start with the back end because it gives you a solid foundation in programming and problem-solving. Plus, when you transition from back end to front end, you’ll have a deep understanding of what happens under the hood. In contrast, if you start with the front end, the back end looks like a mystery, and you’ll have no idea what’s really happening under the hood.
So, in this article, first we’re going to cover the skills you need to become a back-end developer, and then we’ll talk about front-end development.
Skills to Become a Back-End Developer
To become a back-end developer, there are five essential skills. Let’s go over them one by one.
1. A Programming Language
The first step to learning back-end development is to pick up a programming language. Here we have a few options like JavaScript, Python, Ruby, Java, C#, and Go, just to name a few. Now, which one is the best? Well, it’s almost impossible to pick one language as the best or the ultimate language because the choice of language depends on various factors like project requirements, team expertise, and performance needs. For example, JavaScript is used for full-stack development because we can use it on both the front end and the back end. In contrast, Python and Ruby are often used for rapid prototyping and fast development cycles. Java and C# are often used in building large-scale, enterprise-grade applications. They’re heavily used in large organizations and government systems. And Go is used for performance-critical and concurrent applications.
Now, the common mistake I see among my students is that they try to learn many of these languages, hoping that this would increase their job opportunities. But it doesn’t work that way because learning a language is only the first step. You also need to learn the ecosystem of tools and libraries for that language to land a job. So if you’re starting out, just stick to one language. Whichever you like, but also do a bit of research and see how many job opportunities are available for that language where you live. Generally speaking, there are often more job opportunities for Python, Java, and JavaScript. But again, I want you to do your own research.
Now, assuming that there are more job opportunities for these three languages in your town and you’re not sure what language to start with, I would recommend Python because it’s the easiest and has a simple, readable syntax that’s great for beginners. My second choice is Java because it’s a solid language and is often taught to computer science and software engineering students. JavaScript has a ton of weird parts and baggage from the past because it wasn’t originally built for building back ends. We can certainly use it to build great back ends, and I’ve done that many times, but I still prefer Java or C# to JavaScript for building back ends.
So don’t overthink this. Pick a language and dedicate 2 months to learning it. If you spend 3 to 5 hours every day studying and coding, you can learn any of these languages in about 2 months. Now, to help you on this journey, I’ve created a free supplementary PDF that breaks down the specific concepts you need to learn for each skill. It also includes several project ideas to help you practice and apply what you have learned. It’s a great resource to review your progress, find gaps in your knowledge, and prepare for interviews.
2. A Version Control System
The next thing you need to learn is a version control system like Git. Git is not a programming language; it’s a tool that we use to track changes to our code and collaborate with others. Git and GitHub, which is a platform that hosts Git repositories, are essential for every developer. Git has a ton of features, but you don’t need to know them all for everyday use. Think of it like the 80/20 rule: 80% of the time you use 20% of Git’s features. So one to two weeks of practice is enough to get up and running.
3. Data Structures and Algorithms
Now, building back ends often involves working with data structures and implementing complex algorithms. This is where a lot of self-taught programmers struggle because they try to skip ahead and learn more and more languages and tools without learning the fundamentals of computer science. Data structures and algorithms are critical subjects taught to computer science students, and they’re often covered in tech interviews, especially at big tech companies like Apple, Google, and Microsoft. While you can skip this step and go to the next, as someone who has had the privilege of teaching millions of people, I highly recommend you not overlook this step. Otherwise, you’re going to feel the pain later in your career. So spend 1 to 2 months studying classic computer science data structures and algorithms. This will give you a strong foundation in programming and problem-solving.
4. Design Patterns
The next thing I’ll recommend to learn, which a lot of self-taught people miss, is design patterns. Design patterns are proven solutions to common software design problems. There are 23 classic design patterns that were documented in the classic book “Design Patterns: Elements of Reusable Object-Oriented Software” by the Gang of Four. Many of these patterns are used in web frameworks, particularly Spring, Django, and ASP.NET Core, which we will talk about in a few minutes. So learning these design patterns will give you a deeper understanding of object-oriented design principles and how these frameworks work under the hood.
Now, I got to tell you, this book is pretty old and it’s written in C++. Honestly, it’s a difficult read because many of the examples in the book are dry and not quite relevant to modern software. That’s why I’ve created a very hands-on and pragmatic course on this topic where I use Java and modern examples that you find in applications we use every day, so you can see how these design patterns are used to solve problems in modern applications. Whether you want to take my course or a different resource, I believe if you dedicate a few hours every day, you can have a pretty solid understanding of design patterns in about 2 months.
5. Databases
The next thing you need to learn is understanding and designing databases. There are two classes of database engines: relational and non-relational, also called NoSQL databases.
In relational databases, data is stored in tables with rows and columns that are related. That’s why we call them relational databases. These databases are best for applications that require complex queries and transactions, like banking systems and e-commerce applications, especially any application that needs complex reporting. Examples of relational database engines are MySQL, PostgreSQL, SQL Server, and Oracle. These are different products that, despite some differences, work more or less the same way. With all these products, we retrieve or store data using a language called SQL. Some people call it “sequel,” which is short for Structured Query Language. It’s a simple language that looks like plain English. Now you don’t need to learn all these database engines because different projects and teams use different database engines. When you’re starting out, you just need to learn one of them, and you can easily pick up others on the job. Out of these, I would recommend MySQL because it’s the most popular database engine, but you can pick any other database engine that you like. One month is enough to learn the essence of SQL and working with a relational database.
Now, in NoSQL databases, data is stored without a predefined table structure. So these databases are more flexible. They’re best for applications that require flexible data models and real-time analytics. Examples include MongoDB, CouchDB, and Cassandra. Again, these are several products out there, and you don’t have to learn all of them. Out of these, I would recommend MongoDB because it’s the most popular, and you can learn it in about a month. You’re not going to be an expert, but you’re going to have a decent practical knowledge.
6. A Web Framework
The next thing you need to learn is a web framework, which depends on your programming language. For Python, you should learn Django. For Java, you should learn Spring Boot. For JavaScript, you should learn Express.js. For C#, you should learn ASP.NET Core. For Ruby, you should learn Ruby on Rails. And for Go, you should learn Gin. All these frameworks, more or less, do the same thing. They provide a bunch of tools for building back ends, handling tasks like routing requests and responses, handling database interaction, and security. In a nutshell, with these frameworks, we can build and publish application programming interfaces, or APIs. These APIs are essentially communication points between front ends and back ends, allowing front ends to retrieve or post data to back ends. If you have a solid background in a programming language and databases, you can learn any of these frameworks in about 2 months.
So, if you dedicate a few hours every day and follow this roadmap, you’ll have the necessary knowledge to apply for entry-level back-end developer jobs in about 12 months.
Skills to Become a Front-End Developer
Now let’s talk about the essential languages and technologies you need for front-end development. Front-end development is built on three core languages: HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.
HTML, or Hypertext Markup Language, is used for structuring web pages. We can define headings, paragraphs, images, links, and more. It’s quite simple, and if you dedicate a few hours a day, you can learn the basics in a week or two.
The next thing you need to learn is CSS, or Cascading Style Sheets. CSS is used for styling web pages. It allows us to control colors, fonts, layouts, and so on. It helps create responsive designs that adapt to different screen sizes. With a few hours of practice a day, you can learn the essence of CSS in 2 to 4 weeks. You won’t be an expert, but you’ll have practical knowledge to apply in your projects. As you work on different projects, you will learn additional techniques along the way.
The next thing you need to learn is JavaScript, and this is where programming starts. HTML and CSS are for structuring and styling pages, but programming is about logic; it’s about algorithms. And this is where JavaScript comes in. With JavaScript, we can make our web pages interactive. We can handle user clicks, validate form data, show popups, get data from the back end, and basically bring our website to life. Now, if you have never programmed before, this might be the most challenging part of your journey because you have to learn how to think like a programmer. It might feel weird at the beginning, but with continuous study and consistent practice, I’m sure you can get a reasonable grasp of it in about 2 months.
The next thing you need to learn is TypeScript. It’s a language that’s built on top of JavaScript that adds static typing and additional features, allowing us to write more robust code. These days, most companies prefer TypeScript for large-scale applications. So if you want to land a front-end developer job in 2024 and beyond, TypeScript is a must-know. It’s relatively small compared to JavaScript, and you can get up and running in about 2 to 3 weeks.
Next on our list is a UI, or user interface, library or framework. A UI framework is for building user interfaces using reusable components or building blocks. Examples include React, Angular, Vue, and so on. React is the most popular and has a ton of job opportunities, so if you’re looking to land a front-end developer job, React is your best bet. Now, to learn React effectively, you need to have a solid understanding of JavaScript and a basic grasp of TypeScript because most React projects these days use TypeScript. So make sure to build a strong foundation in JavaScript before diving into React; otherwise, you’re going to face numerous challenges. With a solid understanding of JavaScript, you can get up and running with React in about 2 months. Then you can explore other options like Angular or Vue to add to your resume. Focus on one framework at a time, learn it properly, do a few projects, and once you have a solid understanding, you can learn other frameworks if you wish.
So that’s the core of front-end development. These skills are listed on nearly every job description, and with continuous learning and consistent practice, you can learn them all in about 6 months. But I got to be honest with you, front-end development is competitive. So to truly stand out, there are additional skills you need to learn to increase your job opportunities. So let’s go over them one by one.
Additional Front-End Skills for a Competitive Edge
You learned that with CSS we can style web pages and make them beautiful. Now, as our projects grow and get more complex, styling pages using plain CSS can become painful and messy. So over time, many solutions have been created to address this problem.
One of them is CSS preprocessors, which allow us to write CSS in a more efficient syntax using additional features and then compile it down to plain CSS. Examples include Sass, Less, and Stylus. Different projects use different tools, and you don’t need to learn all of these to apply for a front-end developer job. If you’re familiar with one of them, you can quickly learn others on the job. Out of these, I would suggest Sass because it’s the most popular and a good one to start with. One to two weeks is enough to get up and running with Sass.
Another approach to writing manageable CSS is using a CSS framework. A CSS framework provides pre-written CSS that we can use in our applications. Some of the popular ones are Bootstrap, Tailwind, Foundation, Skeleton, and so on. Bootstrap used to be very popular, and a lot of projects are still using it, but over the past couple of years, Tailwind has been emerging and overtaken it. So a lot of newer projects, particularly React projects, use Tailwind. So out of these, I recommend learning Tailwind. It’s not that complicated, and you can get a decent grasp of it in about 2 to 4 weeks.
Another key skill that employers are looking for, especially in senior developers, is automated testing. With automated testing, we can write code to test our code and make sure it functions correctly. Automated testing minimizes bugs and enhances the overall quality of our applications. There are many testing frameworks out there, but the two most popular ones are Jest and Vitest, which are pretty similar. So once you learn one of them, you can learn the other pretty quickly. Jest is the most popular one, but it has some baggage, so newer projects often use Vitest. Again, they’re very similar, and you can start with either of them. I believe 3 to 4 weeks is enough to learn the essence of Jest and automated testing principles.
Next on our list is meta frameworks. A meta framework is a higher-level framework that sits on top of a core UI library or framework and enhances its capabilities. It’s not something that all employers are looking for because it’s only used in newer projects; a lot of older projects don’t use a meta framework. But if you want to have a competitive edge, if you’re looking for a better position with a better salary, I would recommend learning a meta framework. For React applications, we have Next.js, which is the more popular option, and Remix. I recommend learning Next.js, which you can master in 4 to 6 weeks if you have a strong foundation in React.
So that really sums up the essential skills you need to become a front-end developer. If you have any questions, please let me know in the comments below, and I will do my best to answer you right here or in my future articles. If you enjoyed this article, please share it and subscribe for more useful content.
