The Languages of the World
As I write this, I am three months into my programming journey. I’ve nearly completed a software development bootcamp focused on web development and am beginning to enter the job market. I will be looking for starter-level positions that will be seeking those with a basic understanding of HTML, CSS, Javascript, React, Ruby, and Rails. This collection of languages and libraries is used in thousands of companies, to various degrees. However, this blog will attempt to shed light on the various other commonly-used languages and libraries throughout the development landscape.
Web Development
Starting with the track that I am currently on, we have Web Dev. This is a very broad category that spans across industries. In general, however, this is the term given to any role where a developer is building front-end user-facing functionality on an application, and connecting it with a database on the back-end. The most popular languages for this type of work include:
General:
Android
iOS
A summary page for these languages can be reached via link. Learning to use the general understanding of React and Ruby should ease the transition into using React Native, but learning to develop for mobile is virtually a must in this era, when developing for the majority of tech companies.
FinTech
I worked for an investment bank for the first five years of my career, after completing undergrad. While my position was operational in nature, supporting foreign exchange traders with trade confirmations, there was a degree of system automation that I was tasked with. At the time, I had no idea whether programming would be the work that I would end up gravitating towards. I would automate certain elements of our systems using the syntax that the engineers would share with me, and that ultimately has had an influence as to where I am now. Had I known that I would end up pursuing programming, the below languages would have been the ones to study. If I decide to journey back into the financial industry, It appears that Python is the number one language in demand, followed by Java, Scala, C++, SQL and Javascript.
Gaming
The idea of being able to work in an industry that I am interested outside of my working life would be ideal. As I begin to reenter the job market with these basic skills utilizing web development languages, the following languages are what I would need to focus on in order to eventually put myself in a position to work for a game development studio. There are over 70 game development companies in New York City alone, and their job requirements most often include the following languages:
Music
I’ve been playing guitar since I was a teenager and it is my absolute favorite hobby. While I am not entirely sure if there is a career in deveoping for a music production company, it will certainly be something I am open to in the future, whether it be as a hobbyist project, or profession. The top languages that are recommended for coding applications that are handling potentially complex audio inputs are as follows.
General:
More Specialized for audio:
Sports Technology and Sports Analytics
Another target industry for myself, as I reenter the work force, is Sports Technology. I am an extremely devoted sports fan who follows nearly all of the stories in the NBA, NFL, MLB, and various other international competitions. Being able to tie my sporting passion with development for a company along the lines of ESPN, Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, etc. would be a dream job. If I am to pursue a role developing applications for one of these companies, it is recommended to get a lot of experience with the following languages:
Summary
I will need to explore Python and C if I am to land a role in an industry that I am passionate about. While this may take time, and I will likely not land any sort of dream role immediately out of bootcamp, I should continue to pursue education with these languages in order to eventually transition into a role within Gaming/Music/Sports. As I begin, web development roles can exists within these industries as well, and my goal is to get a role that is in some way adjacent to the role that I eventually would like to be in, in order to gain general industry experience that can be applied down the road.