Full stack web developers are an integral part of the technology landscape, and as technology requirements grow — especially among businesses — the need for skilled professionals in these roles will increase.
According to the 2020 Stack Overflow Developer Survey, 55% of working technologists consider themselves full stack developers, while 37.1% call themselves front-end developers and 55.2% prefer the title back-end developer.
With remote hiring at an all-time high, and top companies around the world looking for talent, there’s never been a better time to become a full stack web developer.
Here’s how you can become a full stack web developer.
What is a Full Stack Web Developer?
The term “full stack” refers to the collection of technologies and systems required to complete a project. The majority of software consists of two main components: the front-end, which is what users see, and the back-end, which is all the code and databases working in the background to grab data.
Considered experts in both front-end and back-end development, a full stack web developer can oversee all aspects of a project, including everything from databases and servers to systems and clients. They’re expected to assess and understand how each component of the project works together and how the front-end and back-end will communicate.
While many technologist positions focus solely on user experience or business logic, someone working as a full stack web developer should be proficient in both areas.
Being a full stack developer doesn’t automatically mean they’re responsible for writing all the code — but they have the capability to do so, and that means they can jump in to any part of the project as needed.
Education and Training for Full Stack Web Developers
Because full stack web developers have to be well-versed in both front-end and back-end application and website development, education and experience are key to their success.
When looking at a job description for a full stack web developer, you can expect to see that you’ll need a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or related field.
Mastery of one or more back-end languages, like Python or Ruby, is essential, as well as strong working knowledge of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.
Functional understanding of databases, as well as one or more third-party libraries like ReactJS or Angular is required for full stack web developers.
Experience with other areas such as version control and security best practices are also considered desirable to prospective employers.
In addition to the full suite of technical skills, a strong foundation of project management fundamentals can greatly help full stack web developers excel in their role.
Since the world of development is always evolving, those pursuing a career as a full stack web developer should be prepared for continually keeping up-to-date with new tools, techniques and equipment.
How to Become a Full Stack Developer
For those considering a career as a full stack web developer, having the right technical skills and hands-on experience is essential.
By choosing a program designed to build your full stack developer skills through practical learning, you can get the knowledge you’ll need to excel in this growing field.
Considering pursuing a career as a full stack web developer?
By enrolling in the Udacity Udacity Full Stack Web Developer Nanodegree program, you’ll learn to design and develop powerful modern web applications that form the foundation for the apps, websites, and systems that people and businesses use every day.
Get equipped with the unique skills you need to build database-backed APIs and web applications, design and build databases for software applications, create and deploy database-backed web APIs, and secure and manage user authentication and access control for an application backend.
