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How to Become a Blockchain Engineer – The only Guide

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There’s been a 517% increase in the demand for software engineers with blockchain skills in the past year, according to a report

Not only this, but blockchain engineering is among the highest paying tech jobs right now. This is all because of the exponential growth in the blockchain technology market. Which is said to grow over $8 billion by 2024 according to Businesswire.

So who doesn’t want a better career, right?

Therefore, if you want to take the advantage of this growing industry. We are here to help you with – How to become a blockchain engineer. This guide will cover everything, so make sure to read it all the way through.

Alright, let’s roll.

What is Blockchain Engineer?

Blockchain engineers basically create and implement digital blockchain solutions for organizations.

Blockchain technology allows the information of transitions to be shared publicly. The biggest reason for the success of blockchain technology is: this information is not stored in a central location like any other currency.

Blockchain engineers must be able to assess a company’s technical requirements and develop software to satisfy those requirements. Developing and integrating accelerators and assets, assisting with an organization’s technology setups using technologies like Ethereum, and ensuring that applications are stable.

These engineers may also be in charge of setting application release dates and ensuring that projects are completed on deadline. Blockchain engineers may build the document infrastructure for a company’s application and introduce backend functionality methods.

Naturally, these engineers work for data services firms and technology firms. And the job is mostly full-time office work.

What do you need to become a Blockchain Engineer?

Below is the list of the most crucial skills and education you’ll need to become a blockchain engineer.

1. Earn a Bachelor’s or a Diploma in Computer Science.

To work in blockchain engineering, you’ll need a computer science degree or diploma.

You can also opt for multiple certificate courses to understand the basics of technical terms used in this career option. These qualifications will increase your chances of getting hired by a firm.

Note that It would be advantageous if you have extensive experience with distributed databases and single sign-on (SSO) security. You can also choose to have prior experience in software development, which will assist you in dealing with the associated challenges of the blockchain solution.

Let’s proceed to the next stage – how to become a blockchain engineer.

2. Learn the fundamentals of blockchain technology.

You must first grasp the fundamentals of blockchain technology before moving further with your career as a blockchain developer.

Begin by familiarising yourself with various blockchain terms and lexicons. To start, consider the blockchain definition, working process, decentralization, consensus protocols, smart contracts, and so on.
 
 If you don’t learn these fundamental terms, you’ll struggle to grasp the concept later on. Also, try to learn about the technical aspects of technology.

Moreover, there are multiple blogs, free online courses, and YouTube channels dedicated where you can learn about the basics of blockchain engineering.

3. Learn the basics of Front-End and Back-End Web Development

Don’t get confused between blockchain developers and blockchain engineers. Because learning web development is mostly for blockchain developers.

However, many firms demand the skill in web development when hiring blockchain engineers.

Therefore, knowing the basics is always helpful. Plus, it’s only going to be more relevant in your future. You’ll be developing UI, request handling, API handling, and more with the use of front-end and back-end.

4. Learn how Blockchain Architecture works

A blockchain engineer needs to be well-versed in blockchain architecture.

Consensus and hash functions, for example, should be simple to grasp at any moment. Reading the whitepapers of commercial blockchain systems is the best method to become acquainted with them.

You should also understand blockchain components like Block, P2P Network and Consensus Algorithm, Proof-of-Work(POW), Proof of Stake(POS), and so on.

5. Get expertise in Cryptocurrency

Cryptocurrency is basically digital currency that can be used to purchase goods and services.

But it employs an online ledger and strong cryptography to secure online transactions. Some of the popular examples of cryptocurrency are Bitcoin, Ethereum, Binance Coin, and so on.

Cryptography is required to maintain the system’s security and immutability. In order to encrypt data without any loopholes, you must be quite proficient in cryptography. Even the smallest mistake can lead to the failure of the entire project.

Therefore, make sure you understand how the various cryptographic methods work. You should even put in a lot of practice time to perfect your craft. It is impossible to become a blockchain engineer unless you understand it.

6. Get expertise in Applicative Sense of the Data Structures

As a blockchain engineer, you must have a thorough understanding of the applicative sense of the data structures.

To get what they need, blockchain engineers must make numerous changes and experiment with existing data structures.

That is why you must understand how Merkle trees, Patricia trees, and so on work. To ensure a secure platform, blockchain typically employs a large number of data structures as well as cryptography.

You will never fully understand how the system works unless you understand data structures. Furthermore, always read the blockchain engineer job description before attending an interview.

7. Programming Languages are a must

Again, this might sound like a blockchain developer. But to develop blockchain solutions, engineers need to master some programming languages also. 

In fact, these languages will be required to code the technology’s core structure. You should know at least five programming languages: C++, Java, Solidity, Python, and Vyper in any case.

Apart from these, if you can learn even more. You’ll easily get more opportunities. These are the key skills needed to become a blockchain engineer. 

8. Understand how different Ecosystems works

It is one of the top skills companies look and appreciate when they are hiring blockchain engineers. T

Therefore, to work as a blockchain engineer, you must understand how various standards and ecosystems operate. 

Many ecosystems exist, like Ethereum, Hyperledger, Corda, Quorum, Bitcoin, and son. In fact, you must research how these systems operate and what standards they employ. They also seem to have open-source codes for you to play around with.

The more you learn about these topics, the better your blockchain solution will be. Therefore, very important for – how to become a blockchain engineer. 

9. Learn how to tackle a problem involving blockchain technology.

Just like the above skill we mentioned, this one is also pretty important. In fact, It’s one of the blockchain engineer skills you’ll need to brush up on before applying

Additionally, strategic skills are needed for resolving any problems that your organization may encounter. In the vast majority of cases, businesses lack a clear understanding of how to apply blockchain to their specific fields.

As a result, Blockchain engineers may put their creativity and critical thinking skills to work to come up with the best solution for a business.

Let’s go on to the next stage of the process – how to become a blockchain engineer. 

10. Master Blockchain Development Tools

As a blockchain engineer, you must create a large number of blockchain solutions. In addition, you must be dependable and consistent with your time management.

As a result, the ideal solution is to use blockchain development software. Blockchain tools not only make the process of blockchain development easier, but they also help you learn more about the technology.

This is the reason you should be mastering blockchain development tools. Some of the most popular tools are Geth, Mist, Solc, Remix, Metamask, and so on

11. Must learn how Interoperability works

What is Interoperability anyway?

A truly decentralized blockchain operates without the use of intermediaries or third parties. Therefore, Interoperability enables this by using different blockchain systems to communicate with one another and conduct cross-chain transactions in real-time.

Clearly, Interoperability is a valuable feature that every enterprise firm desires in its solution. It is, without a doubt, the next great thing in the future. As technology continues to advance, many solutions continue to lack interoperability.

Therefore, learning how Interoperability works will keep you one step ahead. It’s one skill that recruiters will love to see.

12. Learn about different Blockchain Platforms

Different blockchain platforms describe how various types of blockchain technology works, such as private, public, federated, permissionless, and permissioned. 

This is another key skill for blockchain engineers that you must learn.

Out of these, the two most common are private and public varieties. They are widely used by various cryptocurrency networks and private businesses. 

Moreover, You cannot develop an effective solution for businesses unless you have a proper platform. As a result, if you want to become a blockchain engineer, you should learn about various blockchain platforms. 

Conclusion

These are the most important steps in learning how to become a blockchain engineer. We are positive that this guide would suffice your needs if you are looking for a career in blockchain.

All the data and studies show that blockchain and its related jobs are here to stay. And the demand will only grow with each passing year.

As a result, pursuing a career in the same field may be the best option right now. 

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