As a UI/UX Designer or front end dev it's a basic requirement to have a portfolio of work for companies to look at.

Here are some articles that can help you get started with that and give you insight into what employers are looking for from junior UI/UX Designer and front end devs.

We also wrote an article on how to improve your skills as a coder that might be useful for building out your skills and profile in general. 

Generally people are looking for a lot more than just your ability to pass a coding test. They want to see that you're excited about tech and building things and that you're not scared to just dive in and build stuff in your spare time.

Books to read:

"I would read up, and then the best thing you should do is try run or take part in usability tests/research. That’s where you will do most of your learning. nngroup has some good best practices around how to. Do it with some of your personal projects, document it and add it to your portfolio."