What Should I Have On My GitHub?

Before you create your GitHub account, let me share something with you …

As a Computer Science tutor and teacher, I always recommend my students to have a GitHub profile. I believe that GitHub is a great asset for the professional development for any Computer Science student currently in college completing their degree. It is a great tool to show potential employers, internship providers examples of your code and the current skills you have as a Computer Science student or even if you are a self-taught developer (or programmer).

So, what should you add to your GitHub profile if you are a Computer Science student or a self-taught software developer?

I know this might be a question that a lot of you might have, and might feel a little lost with all the different things you can add. No worries, I was there when I was a former undergraduate Computer Science student. Today I will share some tips I have learned through the years that you can use to craft a GitHub profile that I think it can help you achieve or goals. I am also going to show you some of the sections you can take advantage of to showcase your skills.

If you would like a video version of this content, check out the video below.

Otherwise, let’s get started.

Have projects tailored to your goals

The first thing I recommend all Computer Science students and upcoming software developers reading this article is to upload the code of projects that can help you achieve your goals. For instance, if you are currently applying to intern at a company this upcoming summer as an Android mobile applications developer, then add examples of your work that showcase some of the skills that might be used during the duration of the internship program. That is, add the code of mobile applications you have worked in the past.

“Add projects that help you achieve your goals”

These could be apps you have worked as side projects during your free time such as summer or winter breaks. Upload the code of these projects to your GitHub profile. Furthermore, create a repository on GitHub and add a short description of this project on the repository description section. Make sure these projects showcase some of the tools used in Android development (in this case) such as writing code in Java or Kotlin and the use of platforms such as Android Studio.

By doing this, during the interview for the job or internship program, you are applying to you can talk about these projects. You can go over the code with the interviewer (if necessary) and showcase what you know up to this point as a student. Hence, showing the interviewer that you can add value to their mobile development team.

Don’t panic, these projects don’t have to complicated applications at this point of your career as a Computer Science student or self-taught developer looking for their first opportunity, in other words, you don’t have to be an expert.

Add a demo to your projects

After you have created a repository for your project, make sure to include a URL to serve as a demo to this project. Add the URL to the demo of the application on the Website section of the repository on your GitHub account. This way, potential employers or internship interviewers can test out the application and see how it works.

“Include a demo link to your project”

This URL can be a link to your portfolio website where the project is located or a link to the Google Play or the iOS app store (if they are mobile apps) so the interviewer can download the application and use it (f they want to). In my experience, the more you can show your skills, the better, and nothing says “I can code” than tangible products of your work that people can use, in my opinion, of course.

Take advantage of the pinned repositories section

The pinned repositories section of your profile is a great opportunity to show potential employers and internship interviewers the best projects you have worked on. The great thing of this section (in my opinion) is that is easy to see when people go to your profile. It is on the front page of your profile, which is great for busy people such as the person that is interested in interviewing you for a job or an internship position.

Something I like to tell the students I coach and mentor is to remember that the person that is going to take the time to interview is probably a busy person, with a lot of tasks to get done and work to do. Thus, using the pinned repositories section is a great way to make it easier for them to find projects that might spark their interest.

There you have it, some practical tips you can do to craft a GitHub profile to help you achieve or goals.

Note that, like I expressed before, you can use these tips even if you are not a Computer Science student currently in college, you can use some of these tips even as a self-taught developer that is looking to apply to jobs.

If you need help uploading your code to GitHub, then check out this YouTube video below I made where I show you step by step how to the code of your projects to the GitHub platform.

There you have it, some tips you can use as a Computer Science student to use your GitHub profile as an asset for your internship or job search.

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I hope this helps!

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Disclaimer: Results may vary. These tips and advice are based on my experience and opinion as a former undergraduate Computer Science student, tutor, teacher, and professional software developer. Everyone is different, so, the advice shared in this article may or not work for you. Also, I am not sponsored by GitHub, it’s just a great platform I have used and I want to share and help others with what I have learned through the years.

Photo by Christina Morillo, found on Pexels.