to ask how you actually retrain and ‘learn to code’

[Merryoldgoat]

Just that really.

Do you do free courses? Learn via an apprenticeship?

How do you use your skills so you have enough practise before getting a job?

It seems so abstract without a job you can actually use your emerging skills as you learn.

I’m interested in learning more - I’m an accountant, quite focused on data but almost exclusively using Excel. I think I’ve got the ability to learn but really don’t know how to actually make any kind of start.

Firstly, what do you want to code? Do you want to make your own apps? Write your own programming for a task? It’s good to have a vision ideally of what you’d like to do with it

try Codecademy - loads of coding courses there for free. Get a feel if it’s for you.

You could start by learning a bit of Excel VBA.
There are tutorials online, e.g. www.freecodecamp.org/news/excel-vba-tutorial/

Check out Northcoders for an example of a course - they are really good !

There are plenty of online projects available to build your skills, and you can also contribute to open source projects too - these let you understand how bigger software applications work.

Freecodecamp or Codeacademy - you can do a huge amount for free and they're structured courses on all different types of coding.

CodeFirstGirls do free courses throughout the year in different areas (I did the web dev one over 8 weeks - instructors and weekly meetings with homework) - you have to apply but very good, would recommend.

Those two are a good start!

Thank you - that’s all very interesting.

I’d like to look at reporting and data visualisation, and business intelligence I think.

I think bringing data together from different areas of the business would be really interesting.

Marking my place here, because I too am an accountant and thinking of learning how to code 😂

Loads of free websites to learn to code. They take you through step by step and give you assignments. But maybe you’d prefer no code coding. Look at webflow or bubble.io
Im in IT and do a bit of coding but I mostly help the developers get through the project by writing proposals and being the scrum master.

Started off self-taught by using Basic then Z80 machine code, then did A Level, HNC, HND, and a Degree in computing all part-time.

Now know Java, C++ and I'm starting to use some Python.

I mainly program industrial PLC & SCADA Systems and configure Server systems at work, do not use much computer coding at work as there are thousands of applications available today which can do everything you need with a bit of scripting code.

There are loads of free courses and books on coding as a starting point.

@xogossipgirlxo

🤣

I’m approaching year end and the thought of ANOTHER Audit in a few months is just making me disillusioned, which is probably what really inspired this thread.

If you're an accountant I'm not sure a shift sideways to software engineering would leave you better off - though I did have a colleague who was an accountant and then switched career. But that was decades ago when computing degrees were pretty thin on the ground and so you could get a trainee job just with a numerate degree.
Bit different now, we generally looked for comp sci grads, and ideally, ones we'd already had for a year as sandwich students.

Something like a software engineering conversion Masters (www.qub.ac.uk/courses/postgraduate-taught/software-development-part-time-msc/#course sounds good) would put you on almost the same footing as someone who'd done a Computer Science undergraduate degree. However the awkward bit is if you're doing it while working, you can't get "internships" (sandwich student placements, in old money).

Coursera is also good for online qualifications that are worth something.

Start with Python - that is the most useful and general coding language.

think a bit about what type of code you want to do. building websites (HTML / CSS) is different to data science (Python) which is different to database management (SQL). Then find a course targeted to that area.

If you are good on Excel and giant spreadsheets, then data science is probably a good way to go. it is all about organizing large complex datasets so people can understand them, including some graphics and some stats. But mostly data organization.

I love data and work in the field.

As was already was mentioned, have a look into extended functionality around excel - using macros and editing them as a code is a great way to start with VBA language. You will probably use something else later, but it really doesn't matter, VBA allows you to get the experience of manipulating the data in a programmatic way really fast and in known environment.

Second step will be language SQL which is used for getting data from databases. There are many free online courses - go with some interactive one, where you can test your queries from your browser. My favourite project for this is SQLbolt, you can search for it.
You can start steps 1+2 in parallel.

Step three will be finding some online tutorials for Tableau and PowerBI tools, maybe starting free courses for both and seeing which one you want to learn. They are paid courses and certifications available as well, but both tools have some free trials, so you start with them.

You want Python for that. I used freecodecamp to learn Python for exactly that requirement. Although I am already a software developer, so it was an extra language rather than beginning

I should add, "coding" is huge oversimplification.
You have to work with the product manager to help decide what the product is going to do. In the planning stage they'll want time and risk estimates for new features or bug fixes. Can we do X? How long will it take? How easy will it be? How likely is that to cause issues elsewhere? What will it take to test it?

You have to understand the existing software and the environment it runs in. Part of this phase is being able to understand what the underlying motivations are, so you can say,
"What you have asked for would be tricky, extensive work, but why don't you do Y which achieves the same and will take a week?"

Depending on what you're making, there may be design and security reviews.

Once you get to implementation, you add to the automated test suite (...if it's widely used, vital software... testing arrangements for something that sells 5 licenses a month may be rather looser!!). Tests to prove it has the required functionality. Tests to prove it deals gracefully with error conditions. Tests to prove it is fast/responsive/copes with high loads.

Meanwhile colleagues will be reviewing your work and you will be doing the same for them. It is not true that you don't need people skills :) It is quite normal to say things like, it's fine but you need to do these 30 changes to the beginning, the middle, and the end...!

Other colleagues may be working on the same stuff simultaneously, so you have to integrate your changes and theirs and not break anything.

"Your" bit may link up to another team's bit, so you'll be schmoozing people in that group to coax vital info out of them so you can crack on.

During the later phases of production, you're responding to problem reports. Often incoherent, hard to reproduce on your computer (but happening all the time to the unfortunate beta tester), or exposing a gap in the implementation. You might be working on entirely new stuff but it's not unusual to be adding bits to something where the original people who worked on it have left, retired, or died.

And you may end up on a customer site, trying to find out what has brought the vital package you sold to Huge Client to a standstill...while fielding questions from them every two minutes.

"Coding" - is the least of it!!!

@Fenella123 while you are generally right about "coding" vs whole SW lifecycle, OP added that she is interested in data, visualization and BI, which practically means using tools and writing shorter scripts inhouse.

There are courses and degree programs for it.

It does depend on whether you are able to understand it, as I see it trotted out on here with no thought around how some people will never be able to learn, it's pretty complex and to advise Cathy with 2 GCSEs at E grade to learn to code is always a bit not saying you are Cathy but it's not as easy to just learn to code as many on here make it seem

Does your employer have a BI department or a database team? If so you could learn sql and then see if they would let you do a data project.

I started as an accountant and then moved sideways into a role as a functional consultant working on rolling out new IT solutions across EMEA. The IT side was picked up on the job but what's important is knowing the financial fundamentals. It was I tree really though - probably not a move you can make in one go to a different company.

GCSE grade E here 👋🏻 and I’m both a software developer and architect.

so if metaphorical cathy is keen, give her a chance 🙂

Anyway, first of all find out what you want to code! VBA sounds like an amazing start.

I am thinking about leaving architecture for coding again.

As you say that you're interested in reporting, data visualisation and business intelligence you could start with Power Query, which uses a language called M-Language. It's a built-in feature of Excel (and also used in Power BI) - and which could also be useful for your current job. From there, Python is a logical next step, which is a good gateway into data science

There have been a lot of threads on this, the usual answer is: do hours and hours of free courses to see if you can really be bothered with it, then do paid intensive courses where you can build a portfolio.

Also, be realistic about the money versus the hours. You only make a lot of money by going into the management side of things.

Thank you everyone!

Lots of things here that make lots of sense. I’ll think about how I can make a start alongside my current role.

Money isn’t a major motivation - I’d like to widen my skill set and add more efficiency to my role. I earn reasonable money now but expect the tech professionals on here would laugh at my £53k per year.

I don’t think I’d have a problem learning the language. I did an intro to SQL thing and the syntax was fairly intuitive (at the basic level) and not dissimilar to the Excel formulae I use at times. I have a fairly logical brain with a maths background (albeit 25 years ago!) so hopefully I’d be able to make progress.

Thank you all for your insights and time.