Onboarding A Junior Developer

Onboarding a junior developer to your team? Here's 12 tips. about:reader?url=https://dev.to/carolstran/onboarding-a-junior-developer-...
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Onboarding a junior developer

to your team? Here's 12 tips.
Carolyn
7-9 minutes
Apr 11 ・4 min read
A few weeks ago, my friend Nico König asked the

Twittersphere about best practices when onboarding a
new junior developer to your team:
Dev tweeps, I need your help
We are hiring our first junior developer (which will also

be the first employee)
What helped you starting as a junior?
What were red flags or what should be avoided?
//cc @carolstran and @KlaraMiffili
11:08 AM - 25 Mar 2020
1 of 9 15-04-2020, 20:34
14 35
As someone who was recently a junior dev, I have a lot

of opinions on this topic. So I decided to summarize
them in this post (in no particular order).
Distinguish between opinions and best

practices
When you're talking over concepts with your junior,

deliberately point out whether the things you're saying
are your personal views or proven best practices.
We work in such an opinion-heavy industry. So

sometimes it can feel impossible to differentiate feelings
from facts - especially if you're new to programming.
One tangible way to help with this is to provide
resources describing why something is best practice.
🖥 Dedicate time early on for Git commands
On the very first day (or maybe second), walk through

the Git commands that you use most frequently on the
job with your junior. Nothing is too basic - particularly
because many bootcamps or university programs don't
2 of 9 15-04-2020, 20:34
teach Git. For example, the bootcamp I went to used Git

for version control, but all of our tasks were done solo.
So more collaborative Git workflows (like branching or
pull requests) were new to me when I started my first
developer job.
Ideally, you'd also take the time to explain what each

command is actually doing. It took me nine months and
one colleague sitting down with a pen and paper for me
to finally figure out how a rebase works. Speaking of,
teach them how to rebase properly!
Have something for them to work on
Give your junior something to work on that is low

pressure, but still impactful. If you're stuck on what kind
of work falls into this category, think either nice-to-haves
(style improvements, microinteractions, bugs that aren't
critical, etc.) or general improvements (refactoring,
accessibility, performance, etc).
Be sure to have a dedicated backlog of tasks ready for

them to choose from. For most junior developers, this
will be their very first software job. So it's unrealistic to
3 of 9 15-04-2020, 20:34
expect them to "take initiative" and decide what they

should work on without a curated task list.
Give constructive code reviews
Code reviews are a major. At best, code reviews are

constructive and serve as continuous learning
opportunities. At worst, they can destroy trust and safety
within a team.
As the reviewer, you should be pointing out things that

are done well and if you have critiques, explaining why
something is problematic rather than only saying ‘fix this’
or offering the solution.
Practice pair programming
Set regular, dedicated times for pairing (like literally put it

in the calendar). I'd recommend at least twice per week.
You can have a set of tasks that you work on together or
switch between individual tasks.
When pairing, make sure you're alternating between

who's driving and who's navigating. Depending on your
junior and their learning style, this could also be them
4 of 9 15-04-2020, 20:34
observing you. Personally, I learn so much from

watching and asking questions.
Pair on things that aren't code
It feels weird at first, but I promise that it’s helpful. Show

them your workflow, how you prioritize tasks or
approach learning something new. One of the best non-
coding pairing sessions I've had was a colleague
walking me through how he conducts a code review.
How you test your own code? Dive into a new project?
Manage your time? Plan a company-wide presentation?
All of this is valuable.
Always be available for questions
Make your junior a top priority. When they have

questions, stop what you're doing and help them. If you
don't know the answer, help them find it - whether that's
searching through StackOverflow or introducing them to
someone who knows that domain better.
Jess Mitchell also made an especially excellent point

about tone:
5 of 9 15-04-2020, 20:34
@TheNicoKoenig @carolstran @KlaraMiffili

Responding to questions without judgement goes a
longggg way for juniors who are already overwhelmed
with learning (e.g. "Great question! Let's take a look" vs
"I'm surprised you don't already know that"). Even senior
devs who mean really well can fall into having a *tone*
19:43 PM - 25 Mar 2020
0 3
Get them a buddy or mentor
This should be someone (not their direct manager) that

will guide your junior through their onboarding. Your
junior should also feel comfortable talking openly with
this person and discussing any problems they might be
having.
Ideally, your junior and their buddy will meet at least

once per week during the first 6 months.
Learn their learning style
Get familiar with your junior’s learning style and try to
6 of 9 15-04-2020, 20:34
cater the resources and materials you send them to that

style. So if they like books, try to recommend books or
written articles instead of videos courses. It's a small
gesture, but it'll help them succeed and shows you care.
Respect their time
Set a good example by not sending emails at wild hours

or pressing for tasks. Let them know what's expected
from them in terms of working hours. An example of why
this is important: In my first tech job, the lunch break
didn't count as working time... but no one told me that
even if I took a shorter lunch, I still couldn't leave earlier.
Later, the fact that I left 30 minutes early every day was
brought up as an argument not to keep me
On a related note, try to encourage wellness by

recommending self-care tactics and being open about
mental/physical health (if you feel comfortable and safe
doing so).
Provide regular feedback
Give regular feedback and updates about how they’re
7 of 9 15-04-2020, 20:34
doing. If you're working in a country with a probation

time, try to give weekly feedback during that time.
Your junior will likely assume they are doing worse than
they really are. But if there is something that needs to be
fixed, be sure to tell them enough in advance that
there's time to make a change.
Show humility yourself
Admit when you don’t know things and search for

answers together. Offer regular opportunities for them to
give you feedback and maybe even in a variety of ways
(sometimes face-to-face, sometimes written, etc).
Ultimately, their success is your success, so it's

important to know how you're doing throughout this
process as well.
Carolyn
8 of 9 15-04-2020, 20:34
Frontend developer and ex-journalist (she/her)
9 of 9 15-04-2020, 20:34

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Onboarding a junior developer to your team? Here's 12 tips. about:reader?url=https://dev.to/carolstran/onboarding-a-junior-developer-...

Onboarding a junior developer

Apr 11 ・4 min read

A few weeks ago, my friend Nico König asked the

Dev tweeps, I need your help

We are hiring our first junior developer (which will also

What helped you starting as a junior?

What were red flags or what should be avoided?

//cc @carolstran and @KlaraMiffili

11:08 AM - 25 Mar 2020

As someone who was recently a junior dev, I have a lot

Distinguish between opinions and best

When you're talking over concepts with your junior,

We work in such an opinion-heavy industry. So

🖥 Dedicate time early on for Git commands

On the very first day (or maybe second), walk through

teach Git. For example, the bootcamp I went to used Git

Ideally, you'd also take the time to explain what each

Have something for them to work on

Give your junior something to work on that is low

Be sure to have a dedicated backlog of tasks ready for

expect them to "take initiative" and decide what they

Give constructive code reviews

Code reviews are a major. At best, code reviews are

As the reviewer, you should be pointing out things that

Practice pair programming

Set regular, dedicated times for pairing (like literally put it

When pairing, make sure you're alternating between

observing you. Personally, I learn so much from

Pair on things that aren't code

It feels weird at first, but I promise that it’s helpful. Show

Always be available for questions

Make your junior a top priority. When they have

Jess Mitchell also made an especially excellent point

@TheNicoKoenig @carolstran @KlaraMiffili

19:43 PM - 25 Mar 2020

Get them a buddy or mentor

This should be someone (not their direct manager) that

Ideally, your junior and their buddy will meet at least

Learn their learning style

Get familiar with your junior’s learning style and try to

cater the resources and materials you send them to that

Respect their time

Set a good example by not sending emails at wild hours

On a related note, try to encourage wellness by

Provide regular feedback

Give regular feedback and updates about how they’re

doing. If you're working in a country with a probation

Show humility yourself

Admit when you don’t know things and search for

Ultimately, their success is your success, so it's

Frontend developer and ex-journalist (she/her)

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