It’s a common misconception that your first job out of college dictates your entire career path. Many individuals discover their true professional calling after exploring various fields and gaining diverse experiences. It’s perfectly acceptable, and increasingly common, to pivot and transition into a completely new career to find genuine fulfillment and passion. If you’re seeking a career change, particularly one that’s future-proof and in high demand, consider coding as a second career.
The tech industry is booming, and the demand for skilled programmers continues to surge. More and more people are realizing the creative and intellectual rewards that coding offers. The traditional notion that a computer science degree is a prerequisite for a successful programming career is outdated. You don’t need prior coding experience to embark on this exciting new journey.
If you desire a career that presents constant intellectual challenges, offers substantial financial rewards, and provides a genuine sense of accomplishment, software development could be the ideal second career for you. Here, we delve into the inspiring stories of seven individuals who successfully transitioned into coding careers, and share their invaluable advice for anyone contemplating a similar career change.
Shawn Wang: Mastering the Learning Curve Through Repetition
Shawn Wang once navigated the high-stakes world of Wall Street finance, a career coveted by many finance graduates. He traded a wide range of financial instruments, ultimately managing significant assets for a global hedge fund. However, despite his financial success, Wang felt unfulfilled and yearned for a career aligned with his true passions.
Driven by a desire for change, Wang committed to pursuing coding as a second career on New Year’s Day 2017. He initiated his learning journey with free online resources before enrolling in Fullstack Academy, a leading coding bootcamp renowned for its intensive programs. Coding bootcamps offer accelerated learning environments, condensing years of traditional university curriculum into focused weeks. While the rapid pace of learning can be demanding, Wang discovered a highly effective strategy: “doing everything twice.” By independently studying programming fundamentals beforehand, he established a robust foundation that significantly enhanced his comprehension and retention during the immersive bootcamp experience.
Wang’s commitment to mastering the material extended beyond the classroom. He actively reinforced his learning through various methods. He diligently blogged daily about his coding progress, solidifying his understanding by articulating his learnings. He launched a podcast to share his experiences and insights with a wider audience. He even took the initiative to conduct workshops on React and Passport JS, further deepening his expertise through teaching.
This dedication to repetition and active learning proved remarkably successful for Wang. Within a year of deciding to pursue coding as a second career, and just two months after graduating from bootcamp, Wang secured a lucrative six-figure job offer. This achievement underscores the power of focused effort and strategic learning in transitioning to a tech career.
Sophia Ciocca: Prioritizing Quality Networking in Your Job Search
Sophia Ciocca’s journey to software development began after health challenges led her to leave the Peace Corps, a position she had aspired to since childhood. This unexpected turn led her to explore coding as a second career.
After independently learning the basics of coding, Ciocca enrolled in Fullstack Academy’s Grace Hopper program, a program specifically designed to empower women in tech. This immersive program equipped her with the necessary technical skills, comprehensive career coaching, and a professional portfolio, all crucial elements for securing her first software development role.
When it came to the job search, Ciocca adopted a strategic approach that prioritized quality over quantity. Instead of indiscriminately applying to numerous positions, she focused on targeted networking. Recognizing networking as an area for improvement, she devised a plan to connect directly with companies she genuinely wanted to work for.
Her strategy involved identifying target companies, diligently researching and obtaining contact information for employees within those organizations, and then reaching out to request informational interviews over coffee or phone calls. This personalized and proactive networking approach yielded impressive results. Ciocca successfully converted over half of these initial chats into phone screening interviews, a third of those phone screens into on-site interviews, and an impressive 80 percent of on-site interviews into job offers. In just seven weeks, by focusing her efforts on fewer than 50 companies, Ciocca received four job offers and ultimately accepted a position at The New York Times. Her experience highlights the effectiveness of targeted networking and a quality-driven approach in a coding as a second career job search.
Stephanie Manwaring: The Importance of Thorough Bootcamp Research for a Career Pivot
Stephanie Manwaring exemplifies that a computer science degree is not a prerequisite for becoming a successful software developer, making coding as a second career accessible to individuals from diverse backgrounds. Prior to considering a coding bootcamp, she had no prior coding experience whatsoever.
Manwaring’s career pivot stemmed from a realization that her successful marketing career, while comfortable, lacked the fulfillment and excitement she desired. Although she recognized the need for a change, the direction of that change remained unclear initially. Over time, however, coding emerged as a compelling and increasingly attractive option.
Her interest in coding as a second career was sparked by several factors. She observed a growing number of developer job openings at companies she admired. She was introduced to the fundamentals of JavaScript by her husband, who is a developer. Finally, a New York Times article featuring individuals who had successfully transitioned from established careers to coding resonated deeply with her.
Her decision was made: a career in coding was the goal. However, acquiring the necessary skills was the next crucial step. The prospect of committing to two years of graduate school for a CS degree felt daunting. While coding bootcamps seemed promising, they also appeared “too good to be true,” she recalled. Extensive research became paramount.
Manwaring embarked on a thorough investigation, attending information sessions hosted by various bootcamps. Crucially, she proactively reached out to bootcamp alumni to gain firsthand insights into their post-graduation job search experiences. She inquired about the accuracy of bootcamp promises, the instructors’ expertise, and how bootcamp graduates perceived their preparedness compared to traditional CS graduates.
Her comprehensive research led her to confidently conclude that coding bootcamps could indeed deliver on their promises, and that Fullstack Academy was the ideal choice for her. She describes quitting her marketing job and enrolling in Fullstack Academy as “the best career decision I have made.” Recently, she secured a new position as an engineer at Squarespace, further validating her successful transition to coding as a second career.
Sean McBride: Unlocking Leadership Potential in a Tech Career
Sean McBride’s path to coding as a second career began after graduating from West Point and serving as a lieutenant in the U.S. Army. An injury led him to transition into IT infrastructure, which reignited his passion for software development. This renewed interest led him to Operation Code, a nonprofit organization supporting veterans in tech, and subsequently to enrollment in Fullstack Academy’s Remote Immersive program. Within a month of graduating from Fullstack, McBride secured a developer role at tech startup Decipher Technology Studios.
A common concern among career changers is the perceived limitation in career growth potential compared to CS graduates. However, McBride’s experience directly contradicts this notion. Within a year of joining Decipher, he rapidly advanced from being the sole full-time developer on the team to assuming a leadership role, overseeing the hiring and management of several new developers.
Currently, McBride not only manages the team’s agile development process but also reviews code contributions and mentors junior developers. This leadership position aligns perfectly with his skills and aspirations. “It’s such an amazing feeling to enjoy what I do, be good at what I do, and pay the bills,” he reflects, highlighting the fulfillment he has found in his coding as a second career. His story illustrates the potential for rapid career advancement and leadership opportunities within the tech industry for those transitioning from non-traditional backgrounds.
Seema Ullal: The Power of Persistence in the Tech Job Market
Seema Ullal’s initial career path led her to the Teach for America program after college, where she taught 9th-grade algebra in New Jersey. Despite her commitment to helping underprivileged students, she soon realized that teaching was not her true calling. Seeking a more fulfilling career, she considered coding as a second career.
Upon reflection, she recognized that her most engaging and stimulating experiences in college were her computer science courses. This realization prompted her to pursue a master’s degree in computer science, followed by enrollment at Fullstack Academy to solidify her practical skills and accelerate her career transition.
Ullal candidly acknowledges that even with advanced education and bootcamp training, landing a developer role at a major tech company was not effortless. The job search, as Ullal describes, “can be exhausting, frustrating, and deflating at times.” Rejection is a common part of the process, making persistence a crucial attribute for success. Ullal emphasizes the importance of not accepting initial rejections as final. She often proactively followed up on rejections, advocating for her skills and suitability for the roles.
Seeking feedback became another key element of her strategy. She found that interviewers were often willing to provide constructive criticism and positive feedback, the latter serving as valuable encouragement during a challenging job search. Ultimately, Ullal’s persistent and proactive approach paid off. After just a month of focused job searching, she secured a software development role at Gusto in the fall of 2015, where she continues to thrive today. Her journey underscores the significance of resilience and proactive engagement in navigating the job market when pursuing coding as a second career.
Adam Barcan: Total Immersion for Bootcamp Success in a Second Career
Adam Barcan initially followed a path that many would consider highly successful. After earning a master’s degree in economics from Columbia University, Barcan worked as an economist at the U.S. Treasury Department before transitioning to a business analyst role at a global law firm. However, a brief exposure to JavaScript ignited a passion for coding, leading him to pursue coding as a second career.
This newfound passion prompted Barcan to leave his established office job and fully immerse himself in coding by enrolling at Fullstack Academy. He describes his bootcamp experience as intensely challenging yet profoundly rewarding. “Fullstack was the most challenging and satisfying professional experience of my life,” Barcan states. “Seriously. It was harder than grad school and much more fulfilling than any job I’ve ever had.”
Based on his experience, Barcan strongly recommends complete commitment and immersion in the bootcamp experience for those pursuing coding as a second career. For him, this meant actively engaging in side projects, participating in hackathons, building a freelance portfolio, and attending industry seminars. He deliberately minimized distractions unrelated to coding during his bootcamp period, channeling all his energy into maximizing his learning and preparation.
While this level of dedication might seem extreme, Barcan believes it is essential for extracting the maximum benefit from the bootcamp and positioning oneself for job market success post-graduation. His approach proved highly effective. Six months after graduating from Fullstack Academy, he secured a position at software company Greenhouse, a role he has held for nearly four years. Barcan’s story emphasizes the value of full immersion and dedicated effort in accelerating a successful transition to coding as a second career.
Stella Chung: Conquering Imposter Syndrome in a Tech Career Change
Stella Chung has always possessed a strong analytical aptitude. Her initial career was in database and CRM management within the nonprofit sector. This background provided a solid foundation when she decided to transition to coding as a second career, initially through free online courses and subsequently through Fullstack Academy’s Grace Hopper program.
Despite her experience in database management and over 700 hours of intensive coding bootcamp training, Chung candidly admits to experiencing imposter syndrome, a feeling of self-doubt and inadequacy, even today. She is not alone; imposter syndrome is a common experience among individuals pursuing coding as a second career.
Imposter syndrome is prevalent in the tech industry, particularly among career changers entering a new field. Chung found comfort and reassurance in recognizing the widespread nature of this feeling. As Chung writes, “Nearly everyone could relate to imposter syndrome, and readily shared words of encouragement.”
Chung’s story demonstrates that it is possible to thrive and achieve success despite experiencing imposter syndrome. She successfully developed a 2D platformer game in Phaser.Js over a single weekend and learned to program in Elm within another weekend. It is therefore not surprising that upon graduating from the Grace Hopper Program, Chung quickly secured a software engineer role at tech startup Niche. Her experience offers valuable encouragement to those navigating self-doubt while pursuing coding as a second career.
These inspiring stories collectively demonstrate that a career in coding is genuinely attainable for anyone, regardless of their prior professional background or current location. The key to success in coding as a second career lies in dedication, perseverance, and a willingness to invest the necessary time and effort. If you possess these qualities, a fulfilling and rewarding career in the tech industry is within your reach.
These graduates’ experiences highlight that Fullstack Academy provides the comprehensive programming training and essential career development skills necessary to successfully enter the tech industry. Explore their programs and discover how they compare here.
