TL/DR: I am looking to secure a work-from-home programmer part-time after being a pharmacist and substitute teacher. I have completed a certificate in programming and database management from Parkland College (including Web Dev, Database dev, C/C , Python, and PHP / SQL) but have not applied nor worked in software development.

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Long Story

I am currently unemployed and have had a bit of a rocky history since 2019. Prior to 2019 I was a pharmacist for 12 years and worked at only 3 companies. I took some time off then I worked as a substitute teacher (2020-2022) and a very short stint in retail pharmacy (Nov 2022-May 2023).

I was on short-term disability from Feb 2023-May 1st 2023). I was supposed to start with Walgreens part-time but have had to push it back as a result of a back injury. I have an MRI scheduled tomorrow and am looking at either a steroid spinal injection or outpatient surgery for a herniated disk. My back should be better soon and so not an issue.

Financially I need to return to work. I really do not want to start with Walgreens and would really like to get something where I can work from home part-time (or full-time if a good fit) working as a programmer.

I have a certificate in general programming and database management from the local college. I am very familiar with programming theory (algorithms, data structures, loops, functions, etc.). I have a working knowledge/passing ability with Java, Python, and C . I have built front-end websites (so working knowledge of HTML, CSS, and XHTML) and backend (PHP, SQL).

Since I haven't worked with programming daily I would need to brush up on whatever language is needed or used for the position. I am a fast learner and will pick things up quickly. So what are some things I can do to get that elusive first/entry-level job?