From Foundations to DevOps: A Smarter Career Path

When I see fresh graduates chasing DevOps roles right out of college, I understand the appeal. The job sounds exciting code, automate, manage cloud infrastructure, deploy at scale. But here’s my honest take: DevOps is rarely the best first step in a tech career.

I’m speaking from experience, but not as someone who started in DevOps. My path was gradual, and looking back, that’s what made the difference.

I Didn’t Begin in DevOps¶

When I started out, I was deep in the networking world setting up CCNA/CCNP/CCIE lab environments, configuring Cisco gear, and building Linux systems to support those labs. It was hands-on work that taught me the fundamentals of how systems actually behave in real environments.

From there, I moved into software and automation, designing internal tools, integrating platforms like NetBox and SaltStack, building CI/CD pipelines, and even contributing to open-source projects.

Only after years of bridging both development and operations did I fully step into what you’d call “DevOps” or “Platform Engineering” work by then, I wasn’t guessing. I had lived on both sides of the fence.

DevOps Is a Convergence, Not a Starting Point¶

DevOps is where software engineering and IT operations meet. To do it well, you need to:

• Understand how code is built, tested, and deployed
• Know how systems, networks, and cloud infrastructure actually run
• Troubleshoot complex, messy issues that touch multiple layers

As a fresher, you simply haven’t had the exposure yet. It’s not about intelligence, it’s about context. Without having seen enough real-world issues, you can’t meaningfully optimize or automate processes.

The Stakes Are Different¶

In a developer role, a bug may delay a feature. In DevOps, a misconfigured deployment can take down production and cost the business real money.

I’ve been in situations where a single overlooked configuration caused hours of downtime. The difference was that when it happened to me, I already had the background to know where to look, how to respond, and how to prevent it next time. For someone new, that same situation can be overwhelming.

The Path I Recommend for Freshers¶

Instead of jumping straight into DevOps:

1. Start in software development – learn to write, test, and ship code.
2. Or start in systems/infra – learn Linux, networking, and cloud basics.
3. Gradually take on automation and pipeline tasks.
4. Shadow DevOps engineers, see how they work under real production conditions.

This way, by the time you step into a DevOps role, you’ll be solving problems instead of trying to learn the basics while under pressure.

DevOps Will Wait¶

The field isn’t going anywhere. When you’re ready, you’ll enter it with the confidence and skills to actually thrive. And trust me your future self, your team, and your uptime charts will thank you.

I’m glad I didn’t rush into DevOps. By first building strong foundations networking, systems, automation, and software, I was able to step into the role not as a beginner, but as someone who could immediately contribute. That’s the advantage I’d want any fresher to have.