A Career in Java: How to Become a Java Developer in 8 Weeks

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Java is one of the most popular programming languages. No matter how big or small a company is (for example, Uber, Netflix, Google, Amazon), they mostly use Java language for applications or software development. Despite C, C++, and Python picking up momentum, the popularity of Java remains strong. It is versatile, object-oriented, simple, and fast. It empowers you to design applications or software that are lightweight and run fast.

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Becoming a Java developer will widen your career options and increase your chances of working with leading Fortune 500 companies, as well as startups. Keen to know more about how to build your career in Java and unlock new opportunities? Read on.

Steps to Become a Java Developer in 8 Weeks

Understand Object-Oriented Principles

To become an excellent Java developer, you must have a strong understanding of object-oriented principles. Besides acquiring a good knowledge of the theory, you must also learn to apply these principles while developing an application. You must practice and learn inheritance, design patterns, and object modeling to lay a strong foundation.

Master the Core Java SE

Start learning the fundamentals and keep writing small programs to improve your understanding. No matter how quickly you learn the definitions, if you do not understand the language construct and core API, you will never be able to write crisp code. You must possess a good understanding of general-purpose APIs like Java.lang, I/O exceptions, threads, etc.

Keep Practising as Much as Possible

You might have heard the saying that practice makes a man perfect. A code may look easy when you look at it, but you may face several errors while writing it yourself. The challenging part of the problem always lies in the implementation of your idea or approach. Keep practising to design some best practices.

Explore New Technology Trends

Software industry trends change at a rapid pace. By the time you learn about one technology, it comes with the risk of becoming obsolete as some new trend would have gained popularity. Hence, the solution you are trying to achieve with the old framework is the selling point of the new framework. It is crucial to keep an eye on emerging trends.

Skills for Java Developers

You can categorise Java skills into two sections: technical and soft skills.

Technical Skills

Technical skills are the skills that you acquire through education, training, or by completing a certification.

Skills

Tools‍

Core Java

Interface, Object-oriented programming

ORM

Java, OpenJPA, Hibernate

Java Build Tools

Maven, Gradle

Web Technologies

CSS, HTML, JavaScript, JQuery

Web Frameworks

SpringMVC, Play, Java Server Faces

Code Version Control

GitHub, GitBucket

Soft Skills/Interpersonal Skills

Soft skills are non-technical personality traits that reflect your character and help recruiters understand your personality.  

• Time management
• Problem Solving
• Excellent communication skills
• Leadership
• Team player
• Critical thinking

Stages of Becoming a Java Developer

Education or a University Degree

You should first earn a college degree (B.Tech or B.E.) in Computer Science that focuses on application or software development specialization. It builds a strong foundation for understanding the basic concepts and gauges more interest in software development.

Enroll for Java Certification

Enroll yourself either in an online or offline Java certification course designed for professionals or students looking to build expertise in Java.

Gain Experience

Work as an intern with an IT organization. This internship will help you in getting hands-on experience in software development using Java. Despite the relevant experience, it will provide further guidance and mentorship from experts in your team or the respective organization.

Top Resources to Learn Java

A  list of online resources that will help you to accelerate your career in Java:

• Cogent
• Codecademy
• Udemy
• Coursera
• Java Code Geeks
• Learn Java
• Oracle Java Tutorials
• edX
• SoloLearn
• Skillshare
• Codementor
• Program Creek
• Java Beginners Tutorial
• W3Resource
• Tutorials Point
• Studytonight
• Udacity

Conclusion

Learning Java is not difficult. You can learn the language in just a few weeks and develop a strong understanding of methods and concepts. If you want to become an Android/iOS developer, Java is the way forward. Accelerate your career in Java with Cogent university’s 8-week boot camp course specially designed for professionals who want to excel in Java. Cogent University offers an 8-week Java boot camp with guaranteed placement on successful completion of the course.