Distance learning had become practice at EPAM long before it became mainstream and its effectiveness has been repeatedly proven by success stories of our employees.
Our colleague Roksolana Pyshyeva began her career as a developer at the Front-End online program. Today, Roksolana has been working as a Software Engineer for about two years, has grown from a junior to a middle level specialist and continues to participate in training programs, this time as an organizer and contributor. Here is Roksolana’s story about her own online learning experience, motivation, and how important it is not to miss out on that one, only chance.
I studied Computer Science, so I had a general idea of programming. At some point I tried to code in C #, C ++, but I never considered Front-End development. In my senior year in the university, I heard that EPAM was recruiting for the Front-End external training and decided to give it a try. Firstly, it’s cool when a large well-known company offers free training and a chance for cooperation in the future. Secondly, the program involved online classes, which made it possible to build my schedule more flexibly. And thirdly, some of my friends were already working in front-end development at the time, so they could help me to understand the material if necessary.
I did not pass a single interview to be admitted to the group. It was enough to carefully read the admission rules, accurately fill out the registration form and answer a few simple questions. Then it is time to take everything into your own hands and work hard! That is how my career began. By the way, the process has not changed much. Candidates are not required to have advanced knowledge and the training program covers the basics, so it is suitable for studying the discipline from scratch. But if you want to feel more confident, I advise to look through any sources on the basics of HTML and CSS. For example, I perceive information better in video format, so I searched YouTube for HTML and CSS for beginners.
I would recommend the following resources:
Front-End Online training consists of two stages. Two years ago, only the theoretical part was online, and the second one took place in the company's offices. Later, both parts became online.
My major advice is not to sit back during your studies, because you never know when you will get your chance. Each student's progress is tracked, even if they are not aware of it. Some of my "classmates" were invited to join projects even before they completed their training. For the most part, they already had experience in development that allowed them to “skip” some stages.
I passed the program all the way through, from the start in January to the defense of the individual project in May. And in July, I joined my first team. By the way, I didn’t get into production right away. On the first project I was interviewed for, only one Front-End developer position had been available, so my candidacy was rejected in favor of a more experienced specialist. But over time, I realized that it was for the best: on the project I joined, I felt at ease, even though the team consisted of 28 men and only 2 girls.
In the “real” work mode you are concerned about responsibility at first, because you are not just doing your homework, but creating a product for the end user. But I have been pleasantly surprised that experienced colleagues gladly help juniors, wait for questions and explain patiently. It makes life a lot easier. In general, the job not just met my expectations, it exceeded them.
TOP-3 advices for beginners from Roksolana Pyshyeva:
1. If you are interested in a specialization, give it a try.
2. Do not sit back, because your chance may appear unexpectedly. You have to be ready for it.
3. Develop your Soft Skills, they are very important for teamwork.
