Episode 44
Last week, in part one of this article, I was pondering about levels of competence in general and in software development. I looked at mainstream naming schemas, recalled metaphor to medieval craftsmanship, described ranks in Japanese martial arts, presented SFIA skill framework and finally ability’s dots in role-playing game system. Now, let’s try to do something with it. How much levels do we actually want? Well, let’s have four.
Apprentice
- HR would call it junior developer
- Sensei would call it 5th to 4rd kyu
- SFIA would call it level 2 to 3, the one who assists and applies
- VtM handbook would call it 2 dots, the practitioner
We all have to start somewhere. I’m assuming that this is how we should call a person that begins professional career in software development, and has knowledge usually associated with at least bachelor degree in computer science or closely related field. Apprentice has some theoretical grasp and academic experience, but not much, if any, with commercial projects. Why skip 1st level of SFIA and 1st dot in VtM handbook? Because to be employed as junior developer, you have to know quite a lot. It’s not like random person from the street can get the job and do well after some on-site training. It’s not a damn factory. One need to understand some basics of computer science, and be able to code something. I’m not saying academic degree is a must, because many prominent programmers don’t have one, but some knowledge in the field is a Read the rest of this entry »