10 Things You Should Have Learned With Your Software Engineering Degree—or at Coding Boot Camp—but Probably Didn’t

Published initially in 2014 and updated in 2019, this post addresses the gap between formal education and real-world software development challenges, highlighting essential skills often overlooked in academic and boot camp curriculums. It categorizes these skills into technical, mindset, habits, and soft skills, emphasizing the importance of understanding version control systems, HTML and CSS basics, and using developer toolkits. It also stresses the need for mastering SQL and regular expressions as well as valuing defensive programming, debugging, and teamwork. The post underscores the significance of effective written communication and leveraging existing code, advocating for a mindset of continuous learning and collaboration. It proposes practical educational improvements like assignments that mimic real-world tasks and encourages contributing to open-source projects to gain experience. The author, Andy Lester, offers additional insights through recommended readings and emphasizes the ongoing nature of learning in the software development field.