Areas of focus for newly unemployed programmer?

Question

For the last year I've been working in a small firm, mainly doing photoshop to HTML+CSS, and back-end development in C#; and of course a sprinkle of javascript here and there.

My background is basically summed up by being half a year from completing a bachelors degree in informatics(put on hold because working/learning .Net took most of my waking hours), and a basic interest in computers.

Didn't really fall for programming until I started working in that area, but boy oh boy, when you fall for that seductive code-mistress, you fall hard ;-),
so there's no doubt regarding my general career direction.

Ok, bit of a long-winded intro; what I seek, or should I say crave, is some guidance on what you, fellow developers(with a better understanding of the business as a whole), would recommend me doing next?

I use at least the same amount of time, if not more, time in Visual Studio and fiddling in Firebug as I did while employed, but looking at wanted ad's for hints as to which technologies/languages/etc. I should concentrate on does not really feel especially rewarding.

Should I invest time into learing Silverlight? Hone my understanding of javascript? Focus on a better understanding of the paradigms that lays the foundation of programming? Broaden my horizon, and teach myself some adminstrative skills(like AD and such), or perhaps attain some knowledge of actionscript?

When being 30 years old, and with such a limited background, I feel that I should make every line count... ;-)
I feel I've got a pretty solid understanding of C# and OO in general.

So, what's your basic thoughts regarding the future of this industry, and more specific, how you got any advice for me?

UPDATE : Wow, thank you all for an amazing amount of advice! Of course, completing a bachelor is on my to-do list, but experiencing first hand the difference between university(in Oslo, Norway...can only adress my personal experience) and what you learn at a stimulation work environment, makes it hard, not to mention disencouraging, to prioritize studies over trying to get a new position as a developer.

Answer 1

Sharepoint, Business Intelligence, Silverlight - in that order. As a consultant on my own for 8+ years now those are the areas of greatest demand.

Answer 2

I think you should try and get a job as a junior developer in a small-ish company using .NET - that way you'll likely be exposed to lots of different aspects of coding and design while wearing many hats.

The more real-world information you have, the better position you'll be in to decide about your future.

Oh, and finish your degree or you'll regret it later.

Answer 3

for the short-term, capitalize on your strengths:

• finish your degree, since you are so close it will add additional credibility
• look for C# development work, since you already know it and have experience

when your financial situation is stable and your education is completed, then take time for navel-gazing and deciding what you really want to get into next. Unemployment gives you a lot more free time, but it really isn't "free" ;-)

Answer 4

The most immediately marketable skills to hone based on your background are, I imagine, jQuery, .NET 3.5 and MVC implementations thereof and silverlight. If you want to branch out I'd look at databases, xslt, or rails maybe, but I think the fastest way through is going to be building on the MS tech you've started.

And make sure you're xhtml, js and css are top notch.

Answer 5

I dont think there is a lot of scope for javascript developers as such. Unfortunately its very much expected of you if you are a programmer to just know it.

If you are in to programming just get into a junior role ASAP with a team which have good experienced programmers. I was in a very similar position to you a couple of years ago where my job title was programmer, but I mainly did front-end work as I had a vague eye for design, unlike everyone else there!

My next role, I hardly touch HTML, I have sat and coded for two years and I am miles above what I was now because all I do is program with a great team.

It seems like you're a bit conflicted between being a front end guy with JS and silverlight and a backend guy - you'll need to decide what you want to do because unless you work in a small company it's unlikely you'll do both.

It's even more difficult to be great at both.

For what it's worth check out

• ASP MVC
• C# 3

But I am a firm believer in learn by doing - in a proper commercial environment.

Answer 6

Find your local .Net User Group - they generally pull from all the .Net shops in the area, and if anybody's hiring, those folks will generally be the first to hear about it.

Plus, you can live on a couple slices of pizza for the day, each time there's a meeting.

Answer 7

I like Seth Godin's perspective on credentials/resumes. Paraphrased: Be excellent. A new technology for your resume is good and all, but if you really want to stand out, you need to demonstrate you're deeper than a resume.

Start a crazy project that you love: develop a chess game in Silverlight, write the end-all-be-all scheduling app for your kids' sports team, build a mobile game that let's you and your friends play tag with GPS, whatever... Just do something that makes you want to sit down and code.

You can chase market demands (and you should to a degree), but it's also important to do what you love. Your passion is your best marketing tool.

Answer 8

Didn't really fall for programming until I started working in that area, but boy oh boy, when you fall for that seductive code-mistress, you fall hard ;-)

you need a little more then just "an area of focus"

Answer 9

I figured out the answer to this a long time ago, and it applies to many things.

Do what you love.

Answer 10

I'd say it depends on what area you specifically want to go in to.

E.g. if web development is what you want to do, put together some simple ASP .Net websites of your own, perhaps making use of a javascript library such as jQuery which will double as the start of a portfolio.

As others have pointed out, some general .Net concepts can't hurt, especially the latest features such as Linq, WCF, WPF (If thick clients interest you) etc.

I think one of the most important things you can do is have some sort of specific pet project which will give you something to practice your skills on and give you something to reference at interviews with regard to the technologies / methodologies you've been making use of. Maybe even try contributing to an open source project.

Another area that seems to be quite hot at the moment is Test Driven Development; it has its pro's and con's like any other development methodology, but I think the most important aspect of looking in to things like this is that it shows your interest in the technology and eagreness to be a decent developer by exploring the different options available to you.

Oh, and it's never a bad thing to have an actual qualification on your CV too, so don't give up on that!