Any Advice? First ServiceNow Job

[jeisgar13sn]

Hi Everyone! I recently joined ServiceNow University and am planning on finishing my certification by this upcoming weekend. I have about 5 years of software development experience on the side. I was wondering if there are any tips on how to land my first job for a ServiceNow Application Developer?

[Dr Atul G- LNG]

Hi @jeisgar13sn 

I’m a ServiceNow trainer and happy to share my thoughts on this. ServiceNow is becoming increasingly broad and deep these days, and the best way to kickstart your journey is by earning the CSA (Certified System Administrator) certification. The CSA provides a solid understanding of the platform, its terminology, and core modules. Once you get hands-on experience with the platform through CSA, you can decide on your next path.

Employers value professionals with experience across multiple modules, so it’s important to expand your knowledge and add more products to your portfolio. Consider focusing on areas like ITSM, GRC, HRSD, CSM, or SecOps.

Currently, the training is free, which is a fantastic opportunity. However, the real challenge is gaining hands-on experience. To overcome this, the ServiceNow community is an excellent resource. Dedicate at least 1-2 hours a day engaging with the community — read questions others are asking and contribute your own responses. Over time, this will improve your skills and boost your confidence.

Additionally, mastering scripting is essential if you want to become a developer. There are many courses and exercises available on developer.servicenow.com to help you practice and enhance your scripting skills, which will strengthen your portfolio.

Start with the CSA certification and then choose your next step based on your interests — whether that’s development, becoming a Business Analyst, Change Manager, or Project Manager. A solid foundation will give you the flexibility to pursue any domain you prefer.

[jeisgar13dev]

Thank you so much for taking the time to explain this! I really honor it!

[Dr Atul G- LNG]

Hi @jeisgar13sn 

As a trainer, I can confidently say — build your portfolio as I suggested above.
Certifications are a good start, but showcasing real-world use cases, projects, or custom apps will truly set you apart.

Make sure to brush up and strengthen your basic concepts like:

• Scripts (both client-side and server-side)

• Client Scripts

• Business Rules – their purpose and different execution types

These are essential because nowadays, interviews are heavily scenario-based — they rarely ask direct or straightforward questions.

Brush up on your CSA training and its core concepts.
Go through blogs, watch YouTube videos, and try to get a deeper understanding of the ServiceNow platform.

The platform has become very broad and deep, so you need to push your boundaries to stay competitive.

Relying only on CSA and CAD certifications won't be enough unless you have strong hands-on experience or a solid portfolio of projects to back you up.

[GlideFather]

Olá @jeisgar13sn,

welcome and good luck!

To support your learning experience please check the links below.

They are two grouped in two places where to start:

1. ServiceNow University  

• Get Started with ServiceNow University
• Learn about ServiceNow and earn badges, points, certificates, and improve your rank.
• Most courses are free, only a few are paid.
• Start with the "Welcome to ServiceNow " training, it's fun and gives you your first certificate! 
• The most important first certificate is  Certified System Administrator (CSA), useful for almost any ServiceNow role.
• Trainings at the SN University provide temporary lab instances with pre-installed plugins and apps.

 Career Journeys:

• System Admin
• App Developer
• Platform Owner
• Implementer
• Technical Project Manager
• Business Process Analyst
• Support Specialist

ServiceNow credentials:

• App Specialist
• Architect
• Developer
• Implementer
• Pre-sales Expert
• Sales Expert
• System Admin

To learn more about trainings:

[ServiceNow University] - Vouchers eligibility, Free Trainings, Paid Exams and Payments | FAQs

2. Developer Portal

• Request your Personal Developer Instance (PDI) — your own ServiceNow sandbox to practice safely.
• You can try almost everything for free (except a few advanced features like AI).
• Explore guides, tutorials, blogs, and documentation to learn more.

Learning Plan ServiceNow Administrator:

• Learn admin skills to move into app development.
• Includes 13 short, self-paced modules.

Let me know if you found it helpful