It is not at all unusual to think that the expectations of a Junior Web Developer are very high. Such a mindset can sabotage your chances, even from the technical interview you will have when applying for such a job. You should never think that the standards are too high - you'll tend to overdo it, fail to show off your skills and ultimately not get the job.

In order to better understand what it's all about, in the following lines we will give you some ideas about the employer's expectations from a Junior Web Developer, but also other things related to this job.

Hiring a Junior Web Developer is a long-term investment for any company

Most companies offering job opportunities don't expect them to deliver complex deliverables right away and don't usually ask too many questions, at least not in the first few months of employment.

The first three months (roughly) on an entry-level Junior Web Developer job is simply learning. This relates to both how the team works, the architecture of the database used, how meetings and discussions work, and so on.

First challenge: settling in

You will have to keep in mind that the applications that various companies realize are often very complicated. Therefore, the first step you will have to take is to install an application for database management, get access to it and familiarize yourself with the company's internal system. The process can take a few days and usually a Junior Web Developer is left to arrange these things on their own, being monitored by senior members of the team just in case difficulties arise or if things take too long.

Remember one more thing: whenever you have a problem, feel stuck on a task or it's taking too long, ask others for help.

First meetings: with the team

Web developer teams in large companies have a practice: they have daily meetings or updates on the activity. In short, at these meetings everyone will present what they did the previous day, how they are going to continue the project they started the current day and what challenges this entails.

First contribution as Junior Web Developer: identifying and fixing bugs

The next task the team will assign to a Junior Developer will - usually - be to identify and fix small bugs. Initially, these will relate to simple and easy to fix things like:

• Identifying errors in code on landing pages
• Fixes usually involving no more than 5 lines of code etc.

After you have made all these minor changes, you will be peer reviewed, so that the solution you have offered can be identified.

First serious job: co-programming with a Senior Web Developer for bigger projects

During the first weeks of employment, after you pass the previous stages, you will get to work with a Senior Web Developer, whom you will help on projects of higher complexity. In this phase, in some cases you will only have to observe lines of code, point out possible errors in writing, punctuation and functionality and also ask why and how certain things are done that are related to the logic of the written code.

Career development: how to remove the word "Junior" from your job title

As we mentioned, in the first weeks you might feel overwhelmed, as you will learn a new skill. Specifically, you'll learn how to work in a team of web developers who program for 40 hours a week.

After the first month has passed, most web developers get used to it, and things become much easier from this point on. To remove the "Junior" part you will need to:

• Always complete your delegated tasks by the deadline (or give advance notice if you cannot do so).
• Ask for less and less help and start offering your help to others.
• Volunteering for larger projects etc.

The misconception that many web developers have is that they will have to be at least "mid-level" from day one. Instead of thinking like that, as a Junior Web Developer you will have to learn, grow and have a clear goal: that one day, you will be the person on the team that helps the next Junior Web Developer.

Contrary to some misconceptions, most companies are not looking for very experienced candidates. A basic knowledge of logic and algorithms is required, but more important are the skills developed by the 'junior' programmer and how easily they learn and adapt.

The path to becoming a "Full Stack Developer" or "Project Manager", even starting from the "Junior" stage, is not as hard as you think. The whole process is a lot less demanding than you initially thought and if you will give up the idea that you have to make someone think you are more talented than you actually are, you will definitely succeed.