How to become a software developer?

4 years ago

If you're looking for a freelance software engineer then Henrik Bolte is the best consultant for you.

When I started software engineering. I had no clue where and how to study. If you are tired of searching for good free online resources for programming so don't worry. I will tell you everything I know about programming and some good free websites.

Disclaimer: Competitive programming ≠ Software engineering

The computer science domain is huge. It would be impossible for me to write about every domain and language.

I am only telling you how to master Javascript and land up in a Software company as a developer.


To become a JavaScript expert, you need at least 15 months. Nowadays JavaScript is gaining popularity among developers and it holds a position among the top 3 languages to learn in the year 2020.

I am learning JavaScript for the past 17 months and I can tell you how you can become an expert in JavaScript.

JavaScript can be run in two ways, first on the browser and second outside the browser.

Start with JavaScript which runs on the browser.

  • Learn basic HTML.
  • Learn how DOM works.
  • Learn Chrome/browser debugging tools.
  • Do not learn jQuery, learn Vanilla JavaScript.
  • Do some mini projects using only Vanilla JavaScript with CSS, Bootstrap, and HTML
  • Spend 2 months at least.

Now start with JavaScript which runs outside the browser that is NodeJs.

Disclaimer - do not lose hope when you start with NodeJs. It is not meant for beginners so relax and give your time to it.

  • Learn how NodeJs work.
  • What are modules
  • Learn all important inbuilt modules.
  • Learn Core NodeJs.
  • Learn any framework to build API services like Express.js or Sail.js.
  • Learn how to Build API.
  • Learn Authentication and Authorization.
  • Learn ECMAScript 2015 ( ES6)

I would suggest you see some online courses which are available -

NodeJs course by Mosh Hamedani on Udemy. But you have to purchase this course.

If you are a student or a teacher then you can learn JavaScript from the Frontend Masters website. It is not a free website and you have to take a subscription but wait, the GitHub students/teacher developer pack offers free six months subscription to their students and teachers.



List of websites from where you can study software engineering

  1. Udemy
  2. Coursera
  3. LinkedIn Learning
  4. Pluralsight
  5. Covalence
  6. Frontend Master
  7. Oreilly