Even so, the path to landing your first job still has the same steps as when I started. What changed is how you get evaluated.

How I got started

When I started, web development seemed like the safest option. I learned React and Node.js, because using the same language on the frontend and the backend made sense to me. I built the classic to-do lists and, since freeCodeCamp was all the rage, I jumped into the “365 days of code” challenge. There I put together a simple online store with HTML, CSS and JavaScript. It was pretty basic, but it helped me understand how the web works.

Back then I read a lot about how to get a job, and the advice was always the same:

1. Apply to everything you can.
2. Go to meetups and events to meet people.
3. Build projects that show what you know.

I was doing two out of three. I applied like crazy and practiced with React nonstop on side projects.

In the end the job showed up on my university’s Slack. Someone posted that they needed a Meteor developer, a framework that joined the backend and the frontend through methods. First came a technical test, and that’s where the projects paid off: it went well, I moved on to the interview and they saw that I was excited about the technology. I had never heard of Meteor, but knowing the fundamentals it wasn’t hard to adapt. It was just a matter of knowing how to write JavaScript. But this was more than 5 years ago.

What didn’t change

Today it’s still the same: you apply a lot and get rejected a lot. And having someone who recommends you is still what helps the most for the first job.

But something did change. I have classmates with six years of university who still can’t find a decent job in Chile, and it’s not because they don’t know their stuff.

What did change

When you apply, the first thing that checks your CV is how many years of experience you have with each technology. An ATS or a person. If the posting asks for three years of React and you don’t have them, you’re out. The problem is obvious: a junior has no years of experience, because nobody has given them their first job.

I don’t think it’s the recruiters’ fault. Finding out whether someone codes well takes time, so people filter by what’s easy to check: keywords and years. That leaves out precisely the people who are just starting. And with so many companies betting on AI instead of hiring, there’s even less room.

I think this will get better at some point. In the meantime, it makes sense to adjust how we present ourselves.

What I would do differently today

Tailor your CV to each posting. Your CV doesn’t have to tell everything you are. It has to get past the filter. Use the same words the posting uses and leave the rest for the interview. Sometimes I’ve even seen the recruiters themselves edit your CV so that it includes the technologies.

Prioritize referrals. If someone at the company recommends you, your CV goes straight to a person who understands what you do, without going through the years-of-experience filter. That’s why it’s worth investing time in getting to know people in the industry.

Build projects to learn, not to show off. Most likely nobody will look at your projects before calling you, so don’t stress about having a perfect profile. Projects are for learning and for walking into the technical interview relaxed, which is where someone who actually knows programming finally evaluates you. If you understand the fundamentals well, you can hold your own even if the posting asks for a technology you haven’t used.

To wrap up

The process is broken and we’re not going to fix it ourselves. What we can do is understand how it works and not take every rejection personally. Almost always it says more about the filter than about you.

Tailor your CV, find someone to recommend you and keep learning with your projects. There will be rejections and uncertainty, but that’s part of the process, not a sign that you’re not cut out for this.