I did this, starting with a Semitic Philology PhD and a math BA, and next to no knowledge of programming.

Don’t work for anyone who offers you a full-time job without a decent salary (generally, at least $50,000) because you’ll be “paid in equity”.

I strongly agree, but on the other hand, my "trick" to breakthrough was to offer a friend, who was trying to do a startup, that I would program part-time in exchange for deferred hourly rate, to be paid if and when the venture turned a profit.

I didn't actually expect the startup to take off, and it didn't, but the deal was real. It gave me experience and a genuine referee, it allowed me to get experience with freedom to work independently and for only a few hours a week, and it allowed me to go into subsequent pay negotiations from the base of a very high per-hour rate.

It helps to go into this during a bubble.