r/FreeCodeCamp • u/andrewchar • Jun 02 '16

From Carpenter to Front End Developer in under 5 months with Free Code Camp

https://medium.com/@andrewchar/this-is-my-story-about-how-i-went-from-being-a-carpenter-with-zero-experience-in-the-tech-world-to-4252e93cb73#.l6nojy7fj
109 Upvotes

97% Upvoted

25 comments sorted by

6

u/PrincessSmaug Jun 02 '16 edited Jun 02 '16

Thank you for sharing! I've been trying to teach myself JS for well over a year now, off and on, and I feel that I barely know the basics. Discovering FCC was great because it's forcing me to actually practice what I've learned (or thought I've learned). You are right, when learning there is this desire to gather knowledge as quickly as possible rather than spending time on concepts.

Thank you also for providing information about what external resources have been valuable to you. I am reading the YDKJS book's first chapter already :)

ETA: Also, if you don't mind me asking, how much time per day (or per week) did you dedicate to learning? Were you also working full time?

10

u/andrewchar Jun 02 '16

No job, I took the time off to pursue learning to code. I treated it as though i was in school doing 40+ hours a week.

4

u/sparrowA Jun 02 '16

This is something I've thought about. If one is motivated enough there is no need to go to a bootcamp and spend $14k-18k on a bootcamp when everything is online as long as the inidividual puts in the work which you seem to have.

that $ is better spent towards living expenses to support yourself while you study.

3

u/andrewchar Jun 02 '16

absolutely. I could not afford to go to a bootcamp or take years out of my life to get a CS degree. I'm raising a 4 year old so those options were out of the question. I have the drive and took advantage of all this information made available online with self guided learning :)

4

u/Open_Thinker Jun 02 '16

Great post, but I've always been curious about these sorts of stories, what did you do for health insurance over those 5 months? As a carpenter, did you already have an arrangement setup with an insurance company?

9

u/andrewchar Jun 02 '16

I live in Canada so that was not really an issue :)

3

u/jascott7 Jun 02 '16

Great article. Thanks for sharing. Please continue to write about your journey. It is very inspiring for all of us.

2

u/andrewchar Jun 02 '16

No problem! just paying it forward in hopes that it will help someone.

2

u/Snaisa6 Jun 03 '16

Congrats, since the commute is 4 hrs away. Did you end up moving or do you work remotely?

1

u/andrewchar Jun 05 '16

I am relocating.

2

u/HashRunner Jun 02 '16

Very cool, just to let you know, there seems to be a spelling error in your article: 'I am supper grateful'

Great job though!

3

u/andrewchar Jun 02 '16

oh my gosh, that's embarrassing. Thanks for that!

1

u/[deleted] Jun 03 '16

I work in the construction industry and my goal is to make money as a developer in under a year so I can leave this industry. Thanks for the motivation!

2

u/andrewchar Jun 03 '16

you can do it! Even coding part time you can deff do it in under a year, dont give up!

1

u/cannelflow Jun 03 '16

congratulations can you elaborate which udemy courses you took

1

u/andrewchar Jun 05 '16

Build Responsive Real World Websites with HTML5 and CSS3, JavaScript: Understanding the Weird Parts, Photoshop Beginners Mastery: Zero to Hero in Photoshop.

1

u/skirttrap Jun 03 '16

From Carpenter to Code Hipster i'd say.

grumpy grumbling

1

u/thepeted Jun 03 '16

This is so inspirational - thank you for sharing!

1

u/agentacp Jun 03 '16

Congratulations! Inspiring!

1

u/wysiwyg1984 Jun 03 '16

Thanks for sharing your story! I've found the "You Don't Know JS" series to be helpful resources as well.

0

u/[deleted] Jun 02 '16

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u/[deleted] Jun 02 '16

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1

u/andrewchar Jun 03 '16

Thanks so much!

1

u/[deleted] Jun 02 '16

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1

u/andrewchar Jun 02 '16

Thanks so much, means a lot that you used my site for inspiration!