Navigating Your Career Path as a Developer: From Junior to Principal and Beyond
From Accidental Developer to Frontend Architect: My Journey and Advice for New Developers
Originally published at https://www.benenewton.com on August 5, 2024.
Congratulations on landing your first job as a developer! Starting your career in tech is an exciting journey filled with opportunities for growth and learning. As you begin this journey, it’s essential to understand the different levels of developer roles and how you can progress through them. In this post, I’ll break down the typical career path in a tech company, from junior to principal roles, and offer advice on advancing your career.
I started as a developer strictly by accident. I spent about 15 years as a web developer, learning everything as the web grew. Because of that, I could call myself a front-end developer in 2012 when I needed to change jobs. My previous job was with my family’s business, where I spent about 15 years setting up our online presence as well as our customers’ online presence. This was a time when nobody had “web developers” working for them yet. So, when I needed to get a job afterward, I had no set positions to search for.
