Self-education turned out to be the most common way to prepare for the first job in the digital sphere. This was stated by 37% of the surveyed specialists. Another 25% acquired the necessary skills through an internship or directly at the workplace, and 15% — within a specialized program at a university, college, or technical school. Such data was obtained by “Shkola 21” and the career development platform “H” based on a survey of 1,340 Russian digital industry specialists.

At the same time, the majority of respondents started earning in the digital sphere quite early. 74% got their first paid job before the age of 25. This includes 5% who started working before the age of 18, 27% — between 18 and 20 years old, and 42% — from 21 to 24 years old.

The path to digital for many turned out to be difficult. Before starting work, 48% of respondents studied at a university, and 36% came from another professional field. Another 3% transitioned to a digital position within their organization.

And the first job was not always related to programming. 28% started their career in internet marketing, advertising, or PR. Another 19% went into content creation, SMM, copywriting, or media production. 11% were involved in website, application, and software development, 8% in design, 7% in cybersecurity, IT support, or digital infrastructure, and 6% in product and project management.

Getting the first job turned out to be not so easy

Most often, specialists faced the requirement to already have experience — 25% of the study participants reported this. For 16%, the problem was a lack of self-confidence, another 10% could not find suitable vacancies for beginners. 8% cited a lack of professional skills, and 14% reported that they did not experience serious difficulties in finding their first job.

At the same time, the search itself did not take too much time for most. 19% found their first job in less than a month, 26% spent one to two months, and 20% — three to four months. A quarter of respondents needed one to five applications. Another 18% received an offer through other means and did not apply for vacancies at all.

Some specialists sought help from mentors. Among those who had such a person, in 51% of cases it was a manager or colleague, in 29% — a friend, acquaintance, or relative, and in 17% — an experienced specialist from the digital sphere.

Most often, mentors helped with complex tasks — 43% of participants noted this. Another 31% received recommendations for professional skill development, 26% — an introduction to an employer or a recommendation, 20% — feedback on projects and work cases, and 16% — assistance in preparing for an interview. In this question, multiple answer options could be selected.