The .NET development landscape has changed drastically. More than ever before developers are required to expand their skills to stay competitive within the job market, especially if you consider the rise in demand for full stack developers. Many of the developers I talk to feel this. One of the main issues they face is that many of them are not being exposed to newer technologies such as ASP.NET MVC which is a growing prerequisite. The results of this is that many developers will not be considered for many of the vacancies that are on offer despite them being clearly very technical and talented.
During my experience at Next Generation and based on the many conversations I have with developers on a daily basis, I feel it’s time to help you out by providing valuable sources that will hopefully help you in becoming a desirable and fulfilled .NET Developer that companies can’t say no to.
Let’s get started!
1. STACKOVERFLOW
It is difficult to find a platform which tops the No.1 platform for developers StackOverflow. With over 50 million users, StackOverflow is one of the go-to places to learn, discuss, and upskill by learning from like-minded developers.
Q&A’s are plentiful and as long as you have concrete questions, fellow developers are more than willing to lend you a hand in resolving your issues. Take the open-sourced .NET Core for example, many developers are excited about it and this is reflected if you look at the many queries that popped up over time on StackOverflow.
If you feel that you missed out on some of the advancements that arose over time regarding .NET, I strongly recommend you get connected with the other developers and ask questions as you work on your own projects, especially everything MVC related.
2. MICROSOFT VIRTUAL ACADEMY
Speaking of MVC, the best way to get in touch with this framework if you’re not familiar with it is by having a look at Microsoft’s Virtual Academy. They provide free online training to help developers with getting to learn the latest technology and upskill. To help you on your way you might want to look into the following courses that MVA has to offer:
After you finish these courses you will be awarded with an acknowledged certificate issued by Microsoft.
An impressive feature of MVA is that after you have the credentials, you have the opportunity to start your very own .NET MVC project! Here is an example of a chess game and real-time chat applications, which are quite impressive and certainly worth looking into. Companies love it if you have something that’s worth showing off. So, get started and use this platform to your advantage. However, if these examples seem trivial to you I suggest you go here and view more of these open source MVC projects.
3. THE FRONTPAGE OF THE INTERNET, REDDIT
If you visit r/DotNet to get quick answers to solve your issues, you’re in the right place. Just like StackOverflow, Reddit is a platform driven by its community. It could be that you might have to wait slightly longer for an answer as the community within this subreddit is a bit smaller than the one at StackOverflow, but it’s worth waiting for. They key is to provide as much details as possible that relate to your query to get a fulfilling answer.
Have a look at all the gilded comments to get an impression of how helpful redditors can be. These gilded comments usually come from .NET developers that already have a ton of experienced they like to share with their community. It often entices the audience to engage in an interesting discussion where developers can learn from one another. But if you have any specific questions you can always PM them with concrete questions.
SOME BONUS MATERIAL
Aside from the sources above, I have found some other honourable mentions which you could review if you want to raise your .NET game.
The Morning Brew – .NET software development link blog published by Chris Alcock
.NET Rocks – A talk show ranging from introductory information to hardcore geekiness.
Hanselman – Programmer, Teacher, and Speaker
Wildermuth – Author of eight books and teacher from which his latest course is about Implementing and Securing an API with ASP.NET Core.
PluralSight – A database of courses covering ASP.NET Core, ASP.NET Core MVC testing, and much more.
I hope these sources will help you to expand your skill-set and make yourself the .NET developer every company is searching for. In case you would like to get more information regarding the job market for .NET developers or tips on how to land your dream job, drop me a line by filling out the form below.
