Recently we had a chat with our very own Front-End Developer for Careers24, Anneli. She shares some of her tech experience with us and advises aspiring Front-End Developers of what could be expected from this role.

Anneli tells us how she started in this career. “I’ve always had this drive to make something, even as a child, thinking I’d grow up to be a graphic designer or an architect someday. Academically however, I excelled in accounting, and made the misguided decision to focus on that in high school in order to become an accountant.”

However, Anneli realised later in her matric year that she would prefer to embark on a career which involved creativity. “In the middle of my matric year, I realised that I would never truly be happy as an accountant, and that doing what you love for the rest of your life is much more important, and I knew that I wanted to create and live out my passion for creativity instead.”

She then went on and decided to study a subject which combined both creativity and logic. “I opted for Multimedia as a new career choice. I had no experience with computers or programming for that matter, so it was a steep learning curve at first. I immediately fell in love with web design and it was incredibly fulfilling to see your designs come to life after development,” she adds.

Anneli studied BIS Multimedia. Back then it was a four-year degree, at the University of Pretoria.

She says what she enjoys most about her career is being able to create functional user experiences.“I love being able to create smooth, beautiful, functional user experiences. I love seeing a beautiful design come to life and witnessing people enjoy the experience, much as I enjoy the experience a beautifully designed website provides me,” she says.

Part of Anneli’s advice to aspiring front-end developers is to never stop learning. “This advice is as much a message to people wanting to become a front-end developer as it is a constant reminder to myself. Don’t be afraid to take on a challenge, even if you have no prior experience in the field you have your heart set on. You can decide to catch up to your peers and excel if you put in the hard work. Never stop growing and learning in the field of technology, or you will become stagnant and get left behind,” she concludes.