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Full time? The amount of hours? I've been writing code for almost 10 years now, but I don't code full time. It also depends what your definition of 'proficient'
by dirktheman 13y ago
Full time? The amount of hours? I've been writing code for almost 10 years now, but I don't code full time. It also depends what your definition of 'proficient' is. I can build anything I can think of, but compared to most professional programmers here I feel like I barely scratched the surface of software development.
In his book 'Outliers' Malcolm Gladwell states that it takes roughly 10,000 hours to get really good at anything. Be it programming, playing the piano or speaking Chinese, it doesn't matter.
For web development, you can learn enough to build a simple yet decent app/website in a matter of weeks. To get proficient, it takes a lot more.
For me, it seems that the more I learn about programming, the more I realize what I don't yet know. Which is a valuable lesson in itself, I guess.
- madlee 13y agoI think the 10,000 hour rules is a good rule of thumb, but it of course also depends on the kind of programming you are doing during that time. But assuming you are doing a variety of things and actively trying to expand your skill set, and assuming you code an average of 2000 hours a year, it should take about 5 years to become proficient.