How to Break Into the IT Industry in 2026

It’s 2026 and there are so many jobs you could be doing in the IT field, programming, software development, testing, data analysis, designing, cybersecurity, etc.

If you got the skills, what would stand in your way?

Well, speaking in general terms - skills and experience.

When Skills Aren’t Enough

Let’s say you got the skills but just can’t get a job. You apply for some and you get rejected or even don’t get an answer. That sucks. I have been through the same, just like countless other devs. Don’t worry, let's go through this and in the end you will see what's going on and how to get your foot in the door.

Why do companies always reject Junior devs and jump straight to - We need Senior dev?

Well, there are a few reasons. But for one, it’s the experience - what a shocker I know, however…
Companies have to worry about a few things like due-date for project(s), no one wants to wait an extra week, month or even more to get what they paid for, right?
Client’s satisfaction - since that brings the sweet sweet money, you have to do what you can to provide a good service/product, which requires a certain quality. These reasons alone play a major actor, why it's difficult to land a job.

Breaking the “No Experience” Loop 

So how can I get work experience if I can’t even get a job? Well, it’s not as doom and gloom as it feels like. For starters, persistence is a great skill to develop. If you send five applications to five companies and wait - there is a chance it will work out, but what if it doesn’t? 

Simple - send as many as you can per day to increase your chances. Take an example from me. As a junior with ZERO experience working in an actual IT company, just my own projects, I landed a job by sending applications to every available vacancy. Your portfolio might not be from working for a company, but things you built for yourself or for learning purposes. This still shows what you can do and that you actually understand what you are doing. So the more you have, the greater your knowledge will appear.

If I sent like 15 applications and stopped, because I didn’t even get a reply, I would never have landed a job. Besides me, there are 1000 other devs, experienced and juniors, who are trying the same thing. So the larger area you cover, so to speak, the greater the chance for success. 

I sat by my old dusty laptop almost every day and searched for IT related jobs, even ones I was not too keen on applying for. Every day I applied to at least  25 jobs. If I couldn't find any work advertisements, I applied to some I already sent my applications to and to others, I wrote an email asking, that I wanted to see if there is an update on their part. If they replied with a no, I asked for a little feedback - what in my application was not fitting. Perhaps there is something I can work on and apply next time. This approach also shows the employer that you have a great interest in them and perhaps it's worth at least having an interview.

Rethinking Job Requirements 

Perhaps you might be thinking - there aren't many jobs to apply for. Most job advertisements require you to have two years of experience and all kinds of skills that you might not necessarily have. So what to do? 

Here is the thing. Not every company will find their perfect candidate, sometimes they have to get off their high horse and take someone who qualifies only partially. That means, even if you do not qualify, you should apply with no hesitation.
Some advertisement platforms actually require quite large sums of money for companies to post a job advertisement, so they might post only one that covers everything they actually need. 

Sometimes these advertisements are created by HR personnel, who might not necessarily know what would be a reasonable requirement for a specific dev job, so they post what they know or are told to and then some. This often leads to eyes wide open - jaw dropping list of requirements, that can intimidate new devs and even senior ones. However, this should never stop you from sending your application once, twice even more. What if the company didn’t have time resources to make multiple advertisements, where one of those would be a great fit for you?

There are plenty of devs who sent an application to a company that stated requirements that did not match with their skillset, but they got the job anyway or a slightly different one - more fitting one for them. Honestly, you lose nothing for applying to every single work ad you see at least once.
Simply put, worst case scenario - they say no or never answer. Best case scenario - they get in contact with you for a job interview to get to know you and see if they can find you a nice spot in the company.

In fact, this is how I got my first job in IT. I applied to so many IT offers, that when I finally started to get multiple interviews at once, I had zero recollection of me applying to their company. Nonetheless, I accepted all interviews. This is how you get your foot in the door. Get to the interview, tell them what you can do, what you have done and if they really need you to have certain skills, you can always learn them before you start the work.
 

Final Thoughts: How to Get Your Foot in the Door 

So do not be discouraged by intimidating demands, lack of job advertisements - be flexible and most importantly, be persistent, because sooner or later, it WILL pay off. Always keep your head up and take the opportunity. Make yourself as visible as possible.