2: Because there are so many people getting into tech now, there are a lot of great and strong candidates. So let's look at this from a hiring manager perspective.

Here's what I want to see in a strong candidate for Software engineering:

3: First and most importantly, a demonstrated ability to learn.

In most cases, I'm going to be bringing you into a team where you will have to learn how to work on something old and probably fragile, probably in a language you haven't used, and a framework that is not recent.

That won't usually be the only thing you'll do, but unfortunately, old code is what is currently making money.

So one of my first things I want to know is can you learn a new language and come up to speed?

4: Secondly, I will want to know what you can bring to the team outside of pure coding skills.

This is where you #CareerChangers will really stand out. What people don't think about as much as they should is the team aspect of coding. I wish more management would emphasize this in hiring.

Can you offer feedback (often in PRs) in a kind and effective manner?

In a few months I'll probably be bringing in more people. Can you help them acclimate? Can you teach them the code base?

5: Lastly, can you code? This is the most obvious, but also difficult for people who haven't been through the tech interview process.

There are going to be some bad interviewing processes and untrained interviewers so be prepared to occasionally offer to show code or talk through projects.

One of the best entry level engineering interviews I did actually started with the candidate offering to walk through some code and being able to articulate the challenges and thinking.

6: So, how do you stand out in #tech as an entry level candidate?

You need to show you can learn.
You need to show you can work well with people and communicate effectively.
You need to show you can code.

I always recommend that people find an #opensource project and contribute something non-trivial. If you can learn a code base, contribute something valuable, and work well with others you can really stand out.