# For absolute beginners ## Free #### Harvard's CS50 - Intro to computer science By far the best course to get an actual FUNDAMENTAL background in computer science. If you didn't take CS in school, this will essentially teach you everything you would have learned, in way less time, and way better explained. 10/10 would recommend. https://pll.harvard.edu/course/cs50-introduction-computer-science #### Youtube channels You can find some amazing 10 hour + videos on introductions to specific languages and even programming itself. Linking my fav ones below: [Introduction to Programming and Computer Science - Full Course](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOjov-2OZ0E) [Learn Javascript - Full course for beginners](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PkZNo7MFNFg) [Python for Beginners - Learn Python in 1 Hour](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kqtD5dpn9C8) #### Leetcode Leetcode has a paid tier, but especially as a beginner, you can get away with doing their free stuff for quite some time. I'd recommend doing 1 super easy problem a day after you've learned the basics of programming (variables, arrays, loops, etc). And progressing to medium problems only after you have a good grasp on Data Structures and Algorithms. ## Paid #### Code Academy Code Academy is interactive, and while it's a bit expensive, it's probably better for someone that wants to learn via hands on experience and not watching lectures. https://www.codecademy.com/ # For intermediate coders / trying to land your first job ## Free #### Algo.is This is a data structure and algorithms course from a super cool guy in Switzerland. It's a bit outdated, but it's what I used to practice for interviews. Data structures and algorithms (DS&A) don't change that often so it's not that big of a deal that it's outdated. https://algo.is/ ## Paid #### Course Careers (sponsored) Yes, I am sponsored by course careers, HOWEVER I did check out their course and it's pretty good. (This is the only sponsored service in this document btw) They teach you essentially what a 20k+ bootcamp would, for a literal fraction of the price. They even have companies that hire straight out of their program - if you're decent at programming and trying to land your first job, and become job ready in general, this is what I'd recommend even if I wasn't sponsored. https://coursecareers.com/a/e05b0d31?course=software-dev-fundamentals #### Interviewing.io Their mock interviews will literally make you a FANG interview god. I personally used it when they first started up, and I'd highly recommend everyone to give it a shot. They also just launched their discord channel, which I joined, and they have tons of job postings in there as well. https://interviewing.io/ https://discord.gg/interviewing #### Leetcode premium If you're preparing to interview for a FANG company, leetcode premier has some great past questions for popular companies. I wouldn't focus too much on it though if it's not FANG and you're like a frontend dev or something. # Find a job ## Fulltime #### YCombinator's job board If you're looking for good comp, and willing to work at a startup, I'd highly recommend checking out the YC Job board. Usually hot times are right after a batch ends and the companies get an influx of funding, so usually late April/ early May for the winter batch, and Oct/Nov for the summer batch. https://www.ycombinator.com/jobs #### Interviewing.io discord I mentioned it above, but interviewing.io launched a new discord and there's a ton of full time jobs being posted there regularly for companies like Microsoft, and there's hardly any competition lol. https://discord.gg/interviewing ## Consulting / Freelancing #### Toptal I joined Toptal as a freelancer when I was in university almost 8 years ago. You're able to set your own rate, and there's an enormous amount of jobs. In the recent months there's been more competition, but there's literally no downside to being in Toptal. I've been able to pickup jobs with companies like Stripe and AXA XL through Toptal. It's an interview process to get accepted into the platform, but once you're in, you're in for life. Highly recommend if you want an added security net of being able to find a job whenever you need. I'd recommend being a bit more experienced before applying, since if you don't get in, you might have to wait a few months before applying again. But yeah, job rates here can reach over $165 USD/hr for enterprise clients if you know what you're doing. The average rate is probably around $70/hr for a job. A lot of my friends were also hired full-time from the companies they worked for as a consultant via Toptal. https://topt.al/6DcWX4 #### Upwork Upwork is where I suggest a beginner dev get some experience if you're interested in consulting long term. You can take really small jobs for like $100 and practice working for others, building real world applications, and dealing with clients. It's more useful if you're trying to go down the consultant route, not as useful if you're trying to get a full time salaried job. https://www.upwork.com/ # MISC #### Levels.fyi If you're interested in seeing the salaries for a company, https://levels.fyi/ is the most reputable source. #### Lenny's Newsletter A cool newsletter I recently found - great for people interested in high level industry knowledge, or startups in general. https://www.lennysnewsletter.com?r=51k62 <--- my referral link, i'd recommend staying on the free plan of the newsletter