Junior Swift Developer Mentoring Program

Overcome the skill gap between novice and seasoned developer.

This program is designed to bridge the gap by offering mentorship and real-world experience to help you land the jobs you want.

Getting Past the Experience Gap

It’s hard to get a job when you’re just starting out.

Freelancers with experience get all the good jobs, and a lot of companies look for senior developers.

Going through years of learning but then not securing a job in your field sucks. Landing a job can sometimes take a long time because companies often hesitate to invest in training new talent, rejecting unexperienced applicants. But I believe that’s a horrible mistake, and that this is where I can help.

Learning Through Mentored Projects

You’re not on your own, and I have a plan to guide you out “No Man’s Land” and into a fulfilling job.

As your mentor, I bring 10 years of experience with Swift, and 20 years of software development to the table. I’m also experienced giving workshops, training and teaching students. So we’ll be working together to make you better at relevant tasks.

Want to get to know me more?

• I sometimes share personal things on my website.
• Also check out my /now page to find out what I’m currently focused on.
• Take a look at my apps, my writing, and my CV.

The Plan: Speed Up the Path to Better Jobs with Actual Jobs

If you think you might not be experienced enough yet to work on your own, that’s normal and expected in every job. Senior devs are expected to find solutions on their own, but that’s where I come in to help you gain the necessary knowledge through our collaboration.

Together, we’ll solve real problems in real projects. There’s plenty to do, and I have access to far more problems than I could solve myself in a lifetime :)

Learn how to

• conceptualize ideas that are achievable,
• plan and make progress on complex programming tasks,
• implement new features or fix bugs in existing code bases,
• create or extend Open Source libraries that are used by the community,
• work with the tools of our trade.

To learn how to think like an experienced developer requires seeing an experienced developer think. Collaboration, pair programming, and code reviewing are an essential part to learn the language of software development in such a way that you can confidently apply for post-Junior jobs.

How to Apply

Requirements

If you’re an absolute beginner and have never written a functioning script, this is not for you.

If you’re ready to move beyond toy projects and do something real, this might be the right fit.

This position requires some programming experience. The specific language doesn’t matter much. Individuals often find it easy to pick up Swift because their existing knowledge transfers well enough.

• Communication is key. Collaboration is the foundation of software development, and code is text: it will be read more times than it will be written.
• You should be keen to learn and willing to put in the work. Programming is a learning-heavy, cerebral and creative activity.
• You need access to a Mac and Xcode to compile and run the apps.
• You should believe that you can figure this out. This requirement is intentionally vague, and I’m looking forward to seeing what you can do.

Time Investment: Balancing with a Day Job and Family

You don’t need to add 20 hours a week to your schedule. Not even 10. Maybe two to five.

Like becoming a master carpenter requires more than making a single stool a year, improving as a programmer needs consistent, practical experience.

However, this doesn’t mean dedicating a lot of additional time specifically for this program. Instead, we’ll make better use of your current programming tasks.

With the right mindset, every programming task can become a learning opportunity, fitting into your existing schedule. Our collaboration will then focus on using this experience effectively.

Quid Pro Quo

Your engagement and commitment are what matter.

As long as your focus is on learning and getting up to speed, you’ll receive mentorship for free. We’ll ensure this trade remains fair as you contribute to projects.

Once you become a productive team member, we can also discuss opportunities for monetary compensation.

The Mentorship Agreement

As a “student” or mentee, …

• … you want to learn essential skills earned through experience,
• … you want to learn to think like a developer,
• … you want to know how possible solutions are weighed and evaluated,
• … you look over my shoulder at work via video to ask questions,
• … you pair-program with an experienced Swift developer (that’s me!).

As your coding mentor, …

• … I’ll be there for overall help and support,
• … I’ll answer your programming questions,
• … I’ll provide a learning program to get you from where you are to where you want to be,
• … I’ll help (and show how to) cut down large problems into manageable pieces,
• … I’ll help you ease into yet unknown technologies,
• … I’ll review your code and give feedback.

Your Application

I want to get to know you a bit through your email. I will simply delete emails that look like the sender is handing out stockapplications. I will not respond to agencies. This is for real people with real hearts.

I’m looking for a personal touch in your application because we’ll be spending some time together. Do share your story and struggles! What did you try? Where do you want to go? What were your projects thus far?

It doesn’t have to be an essay. Make it honest, make it count.

Do you have questions? I bet you have – reach out! Better to ask away than not getting in touch at all.

Alright then.

Are you interested, curious, psyched? Introduce yourself via email: hi@christiantietze.de

My eternal thanks for feedback and support to shape this go out to (A–Z): Dion Bridger, Friederike, Marko Wenzel, Tyler Hall, @Zelphir#6552.