Most people believe that the ability to write code requires high-level technical knowledge that not everyone can master. However, there is a significant rise in the number of individuals interested in learning how to code. And not just adults but even children are starting to show interest in computer programming from an early age meaning there is no best age to learn coding.
Is it too late to learn how to code? Is it too late to learn to program? Is 24 too old to learn to program? Is it too late to learn coding at 40? These are some of the questions that you find most software enthusiasts or tech enthusiasts who haven’t pursued it in their early stages in life often ask.
The answer to the above questions is that it is a myth that there is the best time to learn to code, cause there isn’t. It’s just about interest and then age is just a number. Even scientists used to think that cognitive abilities would start to decline around middle age. But now, scientists see the brain as continuously changing and developing across the entire span of life.
In reality, age is no barrier for you to learning about coding or to learn computer science. Although you may have to face some extra struggles with speed, focus, and confidence at ages like 30, 45, or 60, our brain still has startling abilities to learn and master many new skills.
With growing age, you might not learn as quickly, but you will learn new things. One of the ways to keep your mind on your feet is to solve puzzles and games that keep your mind going— following these activities can help to slow the decline in brain speed. So you will understand that although it takes much time now to learn computer programming courses, you certainly aren’t incapable of learning new things.
It’s also imperative to understand that it may take more focus since the responsibilities of life will vie for your attention. This is sometimes where the misconception about learning something new, like computer language courses, comes from. While the truth is that you just have different priorities, and need to block out time to focus on your courses.
Let’s now look at some of the challenges of learning computer programming courses at a mature age and how to overcome them.
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Experiences in the work field
You may have heard the horror stories of older employees being forced to retire. And by all means, they are probably not an asset in any industry. But if you are worried about ageism, you can relax.
There is a popular assumption that tech companies only recruit recent graduates. Actually, a recent study of 330,000 employees showed that the average worker in tech is 38 years old, compared to 43 years old for all other industries.
The same study also reflected that non-manager workers in tech over 40 are likely to receive top performer ratings as they age with experience. They also resign at the same age as their non-tech counterparts and get compensated the same amount. In short, there is a lot of parallelism in career trajectories across all industries.
Any company would be negligent to ignore the benefits of hiring older employees. Among the other advantages, older employees have wisdom and experience which are not negatives. On the contrary, your flexible and transferable skills make you an asset. In addition to that, your proven track record of achieved goals, references, and existing network – are all things that give you an edge over others in the job hunt. So without any hesitation start off with a computer programming course for beginners and do your dream job.
Is it too late to start learning computer programming?
The straight answer is, no. The job opportunities in tech for coders are endless for all ages. No doubt it may take some time and effort to study relevant computer language courses, but there is no logical reason why you can’t learn computer science in your 30s and beyond. Also, as an employee of mature age, it makes you an asset, not a liability. Every good tech company understands this elementary fact.
Irrespective of what field you want to get into, be it web development or data science or software engineering – joining a career-changing training may be just what you’re looking for to start a rewarding career you love.
Jumpstart your career with an online free course at AttainU. Apply now or schedule a counselling session with the admissions to learn more about the programs at AttainU.
So, is it too late to learn how to code?
It is never too late to learn about coding. People have learned coding skills into their later ages like the 60s and beyond and plenty of career changers have found new roles as software developers. But if you are learning to code after 30, there are certain things you should consider before you set yourself for it.
Pros and Cons of Learning Coding in Your Thirties or After Graduation
You might think the existence of such young software developers is not good for career changers, but that’s not entirely true.
It’s still completely possible to learn about coding and have a successful career change to software development after 30, and there are actually some benefits of learning to code later in life that could make you shine.
The Pros:
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A tech career change shows huge advantages
Compared to other high-salary professions you could re-skill in, learning to code is much faster and easier. While other choices require you to go through lengthy official training, complicated certifications or even consume years of your life to go back to school, the reality that you can make a tech career change in just a few months—and with skills, you can learn entirely at the comfort of your home—is a huge advantage.
This is not to say that it’s easy to learn computer science and then get computer science course jobs, it can very well be one of the hardest things, but if you find it to be something you enjoy, that hard work will absolutely be worth the effort.
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Previous experience matters for skill analysis
Whatever work you have done up until this point, you have certainly been gaining expertise and skills from it. Whether that’s communicating with customers, managing teams, or working on something that needs a different type of technical skill, you shouldn’t think that’s all gone to waste now.
Those young techs in their 20s with 15 years of coding experience – don’t have this.
No doubt, they may be at an advanced level of programming, but they lack the kind of skills that can be gained only through experience and maturity. You just need to know how to learn software engineering and you are set.
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Enhanced life experience shows results in more innovative and realistic projects
The only thing required by any coder to get computer science course jobs is that they somehow show that can they code. And this can be easily achieved through projects; companies love it when you can take a real-world problem and create a piece of software to solve that problem.
Your advantage here is that you have witnessed more life situations than a 20-year-old. Maybe you could create a web page to advertise an event in your industry for work. Or maybe you are a new parent and could develop an app to record your baby’s sleeping cycles and visualize the data.
The point here is that you can use your unique experiences to develop unusual projects that the recruiters won’t see from their average entry-level employees.
The Cons:
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Other commitments may interfere with your learning when you begin to learn coding in your 30s
One thing you might not have those younger peers would have is free time. Whether you have a family or are a parent, or are already preoccupied with a stressful career in a different field, you’ll have to put in the extra work to dedicate time and space to learn new computer programming courses.
Coding requires good focus and consistency. You’ll need uninterrupted durations of time as you try to wrap your head around difficult theories, and you’ll need to stick with it to see results.
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You might be reporting to a younger person if you want
If your aim is to ultimately work in tech, you’ll need to accept the fact that there will be people interviewing you, recruiting you, or even managing you who would be way too younger than you.
This can be disturbing or come as a shock to you if you’ve come from more traditional industries where age normally increases with corporate hierarchy. There is no other way around this other than to try to accept that and to get used to it with time. If you want to take that shift into a computer science course job, there are a few companies that are more open to having age diversity in their engineering teams, and others you might want to avoid.
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Ageism might be observed
The tech industry actually does hire people of all ages. That being said, ageism still happens, and it’s not a certainty that you won’t experience it in your job search.
Of course, to reject a candidate for a job purely because of their age is illegal, but like most forms of discrimination—it will be done subtly rather than overtly.
Conclusion:
To check if you actually like coding and to check if you’re up for the task and want to take that huge leap of faith and shift your career, first try a free session.
If you are really someone who wants to make a career in tech and age is the only thing that’s stopping you, you shouldn’t worry cause the average age of a career change is 39, according to research, so you are not going to be alone. There is no best age to learn to code, you can start today and you are good to go. Sign in to know more
FAQ – Frequently Asked Questions
1. Can I learn coding on my own?
To be a self-taught coder, though, is certainly a possibility. But the procedure will be drawn out and tiresome. There are many available resources online that have well-structured curriculum for someone’s degree of coding experience, from complete novice to extremely confident.
2. How long does it take to learn coding completely from scratch?
If you’re interested in learning to code, you might be wondering how long it will be before you can impress all of your tech-savvy pals with your knowledge of Java. The majority of coders concur that being familiar with the fundamentals of coding takes three to six months.
3. Is math required for learning to code?
The short answer is yes, but not by as much as you may imagine.
While some programming specialties (like game development and machine learning) necessitate a deep understanding of mathematics, the majority of coding positions don’t require such a background.