Language advice

Question

I’m looking for advice on which programming language to learn when having most of my experience in Human Resources. I have knowledge with hris and office programs but have no prior coding knowledge. I’ve been researching multiple languages for about a year now and have some favorites syntactically, but functionally I’m not sure where to go from here. I’m 42 now and by 45 I would like to know a good language that can give me some job security in or out of the hr discipline. Thank you.

Answer 1

;) yeah. each language has its own usage. I would start with SQL then either VBA or C#.

I started with VBA and SQL when I used to design access databases.

Honestly any language will help though. Once you learn one the others become easier to learn.

If you want to create your own software go for C#. If you are happy to manipulate excel and access go for VBA.

note: you can do some neat things just with VBA. I made a payroll / skills-job matching system in access for one client. Your limits are your imagination really (lol and of course operating system)

Answer 2

Really depends on the company. C# would also be an alright choice. Then you could be looking to access these data sources with relative ease e.g For example by using Visual Studio to connect to excel sheets access databases and ODBC datasources

Answer 3

:) 1998! It was a mixed role. I was the IT department for a small recruitment agency. I left that position in 2005 and did not get much more opportunity after that in my other positions to code.

Answer 4

I may cop hate (lots of developer hate it), but sounds like vba/vb might be a good choice for your current situation. This would enable you to work directly in the MS Office suite. Not sure what Ariel would use, but if you asked your IT department they maybe able to tell you if you can get ODBC access to it and then you could link tables into access to work with

Answer 5

what software do you currently use in your daily routine (for work)? this may help me provide some options.

but without any guidance I would suggest you learn sql. this should come in handy straight away.

you could create your own queries for the company database or your own excel spreadsheets.

Answer 6

Hi Jacob... Based on the parameters of your 3 year plan, I would follow Jay's recommendation.

Specifically, VBA is a great way to ease into the programming world in a way that is relevant and immediately useful to you in the business world. Once you've gotten the hang of writing your own VBA functions in Excel, Word, Powerpoint, and/or Access, you can ease into the world of SQL databases. I would recommend MS SQL Express if you are taking this path.

Afterwards, you can then transition your VBA skills to VB.NET, and then C#. Both VB.NET and C# compile to the same .NET Intermediate Language and therefore are pretty much the same. Transitioning from VBA to VB.NET to C# will make for a more pragmatic and progressive learning experience.

If I was 42 years old... oh wait, I am :)... I would definitely take this approach. This will allow you to leverage your years of business experience as a driving catalyst for your next career.

Lastly, I did a quick search for some videos on VBA and SQL and found some entertaining ones worth checking out:

- Should I Learn VBA or SQL?
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=onKv8rXoCzM

- VBA is easy to learn and can make you $87,000 per year
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ewWP8F_PoTY

- Flappy Bird in Excel VBA (Just because this was too funny LOL)
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vbjpJIRtJk

Answer 7

@Jacob... Sorry I missed your last message. It depends on what you want to build, I suppose. I'm not the best person to ask about Python as a language to start with. I don't share the same love for this language that many others do. I use Python for some basic automation scripts I run locally. However, when I tried building a larger app with it, I kept fighting with many nuances I don't deal with in many other languages. It is likely because I am less familiar with it.

If it was me, I would probably pick C# or Javascript + NodeJS instead of Python. You might struggle transitioning from Python to these other languages.

Again, this is just my 2 cents. Others will swear by Python and more power to them. 🙄

Answer 8

Thanks brother. I think I’m going the vba route with sql. Dig my feet in excel and access as deep as I can too. I think that will set me up for some good skills to use at work and for start ups if I decide to look for other jobs out of state. Thanks

Answer 9

Excel, access and a 3rd party hris platform called “Ariel”. Should I learn something along with sql?
Thanks for the great advice.

Answer 10

I’m kinda looking to gain a skill that would make me marketable outside my present job. For example—if I moved out of state and worked as an hr analyst or hris Analyst. Would vba still be a marketable skill? Or would another language be better suited?

Answer 11

It’s so difficult to get started in this area. So many choices, I wish someone would just tell me what to learn, but I know there are a lot of variables to consider. (No pun intended). I’m learning there is no “magic language”. I was originally just wanting to learn (1) language to open up my skill set, but choosing it has become the most difficult part. Thank you for your advice though!

Answer 12

Very good advice. Thank you for the help. Much appreciated.

Answer 13

@Jay - I have to ask... how long have you been in software development? My first two paid software development gigs involved VBA in Excel and Access back in 1996. That was during a time when the internet was in its infancy and learning to program actually required reading books and figuring a lot out on your own. :)

For me, the VBA projects were:

1) A service dispatch app for a new residential plumbing company.
2) A CRM database for a staffing company.

That said, it feels like a decades ago when I last worked with VBA... Oh wait... it was that long ago. :)

@Jacob - If you ever want to get in touch with me or other experienced developers with specific questions, connect with us on the SoloLearn Dev Connection Slack Team. Information to join can be found on a question posted by Shane Overby:

- https://www.sololearn.com/Discuss/754401/let-s-chat

Slack is much more conducive for follow up discussions than the Q/A format on SoloLearn.

@Jay - You and anyone else is welcome to join as well. Just be sure to call me out by name so I can be notified. My Slack name there is @David Carroll.

Answer 14

Thank u guys. You’ve helped me out in a very concise way. Much appreciated and I will post on the slack thread. Thanks to both of you.
Stay well.

Answer 15

@Jacob: BTW... In the "Let's chat" thread, someone mentioned that Microsoft stopped including the offline documentation for Office VBA starting with Office 2013.

If you need this documentation while disconnected from the internet, here are some links you can use:

Office 2013 VBA CHM:
- https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=40326

Office 2016 VBA CHM:
- https://github.com/OfficeDev/VBA-content/blob/master/README.md

Answer 16

Cool man. Thank you.

Answer 17

One more thought. Hahah
I enjoy the python syntax, would that be a good route to go? Is python, sql a good combo? Compared to vba, sql.