Land Your First Dev Job in the AI Era
For new and bootcamp grads facing "AI is killing junior roles — what do I even learn?"
The honest, ordered path for a new grad in 2026: understand what actually changed for juniors, learn the fundamentals AND the new core skill (directing and reviewing AI), build a portfolio of judgment, and walk into the 2026 interview ready to work with AI in the room.
- Understand what AI changed for junior roles — and what it didn’t
- Pair strong fundamentals with the new skill of directing and reviewing AI
- Build a portfolio of real, shipped projects that prove judgment
- Walk into the 2026 interview ready to work with AI in the room
The New Grad in the AI Era
Start here — what actually changed for juniors, and what to do about it.
Agent Time-Horizon Explorer
See the trend you’re entering — how fast agent capability is growing.
The Agentic Coding Handbook
Learn to work AI-augmented — the agentic coding workflow.
Vibe Coding vs Spec-Driven Development
The discipline that keeps you employable: specify and verify, don’t just vibe.
Spot the Bug in AI Code
Practice the new core skill: reviewing AI code adversarially.
Two Sum
Keep the fundamentals sharp — understand what you ship, don’t just paste it.
Write a Verifier
Design a verifier — the mindset behind trusting AI output.
AI-Assisted Interviews
The 2026 interview: working with AI in the room, not against it.
The Resume & Portfolio Handbook
Present a portfolio of judgment — real shipped things over credentials.
The Salary Negotiation Handbook
Anchor your first offer with data, not hope.
AI Engineer Roadmap
A concrete direction to grow into once you’re in.
The scariest question for a new or bootcamp grad in 2026 is “AI is killing junior roles — what do I even learn?” The honest answer: the generic entry rung genuinely got tighter, but the path that works now is clearer, not hopeless. This path orders it so you’re not guessing.
You start with what actually changed for juniors (and what didn’t), then build the new core skill on top of fundamentals: directing AI, and — more importantly — reviewing it adversarially, because the grad who understands and can debug what they ship is the one who lasts. You finish on the job hunt itself: the 2026 interview with AI in the room, a portfolio of judgment over credentials, and a data-anchored first-offer negotiation. Demonstrated ability is the currency now, and this is the ordered way to build it.