Smart contract development is currently a hot-in-demand career and the annual salary of a smart contract developer is from $100,000 to $180,000 according to web3 careers. Good thing is that the career is still not saturated and there is enough room to join and become one of the early players.
Here are 6 steps to become a smart contract developer.
1) Choose a smart contract language
There are currently three common languages to write smart contracts : Solidity, Golang and Rust. However, Solidity is leading the chart as the most popular language and it's a great language to start your journey into smart contract development.
2) Learn Solidity fundamentals
With numerous resources (web contents, Youtube videos, Udemy courses) to learn solidity has become very easy even as self-taught. Learn about Solidity Operators, Variables, Functions, Modifiers, Arrays, Mapping, Events, Enums, Structs, Data Types and so on.
Here are some resources to get started.
Youtube Channels -
Learn Solidity, Blockchain Ethereum and Python edition
Learn Blockchain, Solidity, and Full Stack Web3 Development with JavaScript – 32-Hour Course
Web Content -
www.geeksforgeeks.org/solidity-variables/ https://www.docs.soliditylang.org/
Udemy course - https://www.udemy.com/course/the-complete-solidity-course-blockchain-zero-to-expert/
3) Learn Smart Contract tools
Writing smart contracts and becoming good as a smart contract developer requires you to have vast knowledge of some complementary tools and web3 tools.
Tools like
Remix - An integrated development environment for writing smart contracts Metamask - A software to access the Ethereum blockchain and host arrays of decentralised applications. Hardhat or Truffle : Blockchain environment to compile, deploy, test and debug smart contracts. Others like Brownie, Genache, web3.js and Ether.js are additional tools to know.
4) Enroll in smart contract programs
Chainlink.education by Chainlink offers a program where you can learn solidity language and other tools to develop hybrid smart contracts. This program offers its participants opportunity to earn NFT reward after completion, receive a certificate and become eligible to contribute to chainlink academy and docs.
5) Build smart contract Projects
Building projects helps to sharpen your skill, exposing you to more in depth knowledge about smart contracts. You can contribute to open source projects or build a personal project.
Projects like : Building NFT smart contract (ERX 721), NFT marketplace, NFT gallery, or building a token DApp will help broaden your understanding and build a project portfolio.
6) Join a smart contract Hackathon
Hackathons are events where people come together from various backgrounds to develop a minimum viable product that solves a real-world problem. Chainlink Hackathon is a great opportunity to get hands-on experience and deepen your expertise.
EXTRA TIP :
Join Smart Contract Africa Developers community to learn and interact with fellow developers.
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