Follow up on your applications! I know a lot of people are hesitant because they don't want to be a bother, want to give due process, etc... but communication is key.
I don't suggest repeatedly sending an email 2-3 days later, but if you haven't heard anything back after a week and you're genuinely interested, let them know you're still looking forward to their response in a quick 2-3 sentence message.
One place I applied for completely lost my information. I followed up, sent a new copy of my CV, and received an interview.
Human errors happen and your tip is good to double check on the recruiting team.
But beware of places where they "loose candidates". Why are they loosing them? Is that an example of how the company will deal with you as an employee? Is that how they value fellow engineers?
Yeah, I totally agree. The candidate who follows up is going to get more attention and there is no downside even if they end up going with someone else.
Make projects! As long as you can show that you've got skill, and you can show that it relates to what the company is looking for, then you might just be of value. The projects don't have to have legitimate value or purpose, they just have to help you develop your skills.
For my first programming job, I hadn't gone to college or gotten any certificates yet: I just had a whole bunch of projects that showed my (future) employer that I knew what I was doing. When they brought me in for an interview, they asked me to explain one of my projects. The same thing kept happening for the other jobs that I got, despite my having some work experience on my resume.
1) Focus
You can apply to every job where you can submit your resume. Or you can target them. Both require time.
You might think that sending (and keeping track of) 100 CVs is fast, but it will take the same time or more than filtering first and then targeting your resume and cover letter. Also I believe you will get better response rates and that will motivate you more.
2) Keep track
Yes, open your applied.txt and keep track of your moves.
2) Understand that you still don't know what you enjoy doing.
I've seen it many times with first timers. They apply, they get the job, and then they realise that they don't like that kind of job. Understand that a company will set a probation period so you both can check after some time if everything is ok.
3) Relax and smile
First time in a big building. First time talking to a person that could be your colleague. Remember to be yourself, even if it is a young yourself, still student yourself. They know it is your first job, don't try to hide it.
4) It is not all about code
You see that dev there? You might spend more time speaking with that person than to your friends. Did you enjoyed the interview with your interviewers? They will ask the same question to themselves.
5) Keep doing interviews.
Remember point 1? Add some extra companies just to warm up interviews.
Number 5) can be a daunting one. Though it is needed sometimes to get your mind in the right place to feel comfortable answering questions on the technical portions.
I would also say apply for positions that are slightly above your experience level. For instance, if you have 1-2 years of professional experience apply for the positions that are wanting 3-4. Sometimes employers will pick your brain a bit to see what you know. You would be surprised that some will make exceptions. Never hurts to let them know you are interested in advancing in your career.
Breadth: Have a broad base of knowledge across the spectrum of computer science. Understand that your primary function as a programmer within the context of a larger organization is to solve problems; sometimes very difficult problems, the solution of which may come from any number of different technologies.
Depth: Increase your value to the organization by being an expert in one particular discipline. After previously establishing that you have many different tools in your toolbox (breadth), show your prospective employer that, when it comes to your particular specialty, there is none better.
Admittedly, to develop a genuine expertise, true depth, takes time. Since this is your first programming job, you may not have that time. The way you overcome that challenge: you have to have a genuine passion for your technology of choice. Develop projects on your own to demonstrate your passion.
Meet ups and user groups. I've gotten more positions in the past 25 years through people I knew than applications I sent in.
Learn aggressively. Present something at a meetup; in my experience they're always looking for presentations, even if it's just a 5-minute lightning talk. Show that you're eager and able to learn.
People have given great advice on having hobby projects and following up on the applications so I won't go into them. My advice is to network and be active: attend hackathons and meetups, show that you are willing to learn and take on new challenges.
It can be intimidating first (I bailed out of my first hackathon after 3 hours of not doing anything) but you'll get there. Many teams are happy to take a junior into the team to teach, just be up front about it. Meetups are great ways to learn new things, meet new people and get your name/face into the minds of people.
I would say to remember that as well as finding a job (that you may need BADLY), you need to find the right job.
If you’re looking for your first job, there must be a reason? Why do you want to do programming? Use the same thinking to find the company that fits. It may be tempting to take the first job to get a foot in the door of the industry, but quickly that job could become a run of the mill daily grind.
If you can, hold off. You’ll know the right one when it comes along.
Not a tip, but here is how I got my first gig. When you are in school start contributing to your favorite open source projects. Take part in mailing lists. That is how I got my first gig. It was a simple Perl script help that leads to getting me an interview and later job too. I hope this helps someone.
Use whatever opportunities you can to build your experience.
Are you entering things manually into a spreadsheet? Build a little VBA app that'll speed up your data entry.
Do you need to do reporting on some spreadsheets? Write a macro (or a console app) that'll take all that information and spit it out into something coherent.
I think its super important, especially in the early days, to take whatever you can. It doesn't need to be a massive custom build app in the latest frameworks (though hell, if you can do that good luck to you!). It just needs to be something demonstrable, where you can prove you've learnt something, and that you're willing to be inventive.
Another thing you can do is to reach out to not-for-profit/charity organisations, and see if there's anything small they need built. A lot of the time, these organisations are strapped for cash and will appreciate any assistance. Before starting any work you still probably want to talk to a lawyer and ensure you're not signing yourself up for trouble.
Apply even though you do not meet the requirements. One requirement of my first programming job was have a degree in computer science, I didn't have it but I got the job because I showed that I had the skills.
Have passion to learn and display it in the interviews. I interview programmers and those who get my attention are those that get excited learning new things, and demonstrate to have skills to learn fast.
Write code: personal projects, experiments, every little piece of code helps to show your skills and what are your areas of interest.
Top comments (32)
Follow up on your applications! I know a lot of people are hesitant because they don't want to be a bother, want to give due process, etc... but communication is key.
I don't suggest repeatedly sending an email 2-3 days later, but if you haven't heard anything back after a week and you're genuinely interested, let them know you're still looking forward to their response in a quick 2-3 sentence message.
One place I applied for completely lost my information. I followed up, sent a new copy of my CV, and received an interview.
Human errors happen and your tip is good to double check on the recruiting team.
But beware of places where they "loose candidates". Why are they loosing them? Is that an example of how the company will deal with you as an employee? Is that how they value fellow engineers?
Yeah, I totally agree. The candidate who follows up is going to get more attention and there is no downside even if they end up going with someone else.
Make projects! As long as you can show that you've got skill, and you can show that it relates to what the company is looking for, then you might just be of value. The projects don't have to have legitimate value or purpose, they just have to help you develop your skills.
For my first programming job, I hadn't gone to college or gotten any certificates yet: I just had a whole bunch of projects that showed my (future) employer that I knew what I was doing. When they brought me in for an interview, they asked me to explain one of my projects. The same thing kept happening for the other jobs that I got, despite my having some work experience on my resume.
Absolutely. Projects have the bonus of being the best way to learn.
1) Focus
You can apply to every job where you can submit your resume. Or you can target them. Both require time.
You might think that sending (and keeping track of) 100 CVs is fast, but it will take the same time or more than filtering first and then targeting your resume and cover letter. Also I believe you will get better response rates and that will motivate you more.
2) Keep track
Yes, open your applied.txt and keep track of your moves.
2) Understand that you still don't know what you enjoy doing.
I've seen it many times with first timers. They apply, they get the job, and then they realise that they don't like that kind of job. Understand that a company will set a probation period so you both can check after some time if everything is ok.
3) Relax and smile
First time in a big building. First time talking to a person that could be your colleague. Remember to be yourself, even if it is a young yourself, still student yourself. They know it is your first job, don't try to hide it.
4) It is not all about code
You see that dev there? You might spend more time speaking with that person than to your friends. Did you enjoyed the interview with your interviewers? They will ask the same question to themselves.
5) Keep doing interviews.
Remember point 1? Add some extra companies just to warm up interviews.
Number 5) can be a daunting one. Though it is needed sometimes to get your mind in the right place to feel comfortable answering questions on the technical portions.
I would also say apply for positions that are slightly above your experience level. For instance, if you have 1-2 years of professional experience apply for the positions that are wanting 3-4. Sometimes employers will pick your brain a bit to see what you know. You would be surprised that some will make exceptions. Never hurts to let them know you are interested in advancing in your career.
Breadth and depth.
Breadth: Have a broad base of knowledge across the spectrum of computer science. Understand that your primary function as a programmer within the context of a larger organization is to solve problems; sometimes very difficult problems, the solution of which may come from any number of different technologies.
Depth: Increase your value to the organization by being an expert in one particular discipline. After previously establishing that you have many different tools in your toolbox (breadth), show your prospective employer that, when it comes to your particular specialty, there is none better.
Admittedly, to develop a genuine expertise, true depth, takes time. Since this is your first programming job, you may not have that time. The way you overcome that challenge: you have to have a genuine passion for your technology of choice. Develop projects on your own to demonstrate your passion.
Meet ups and user groups. I've gotten more positions in the past 25 years through people I knew than applications I sent in.
Learn aggressively. Present something at a meetup; in my experience they're always looking for presentations, even if it's just a 5-minute lightning talk. Show that you're eager and able to learn.
People have given great advice on having hobby projects and following up on the applications so I won't go into them. My advice is to network and be active: attend hackathons and meetups, show that you are willing to learn and take on new challenges.
It can be intimidating first (I bailed out of my first hackathon after 3 hours of not doing anything) but you'll get there. Many teams are happy to take a junior into the team to teach, just be up front about it. Meetups are great ways to learn new things, meet new people and get your name/face into the minds of people.
I would say to remember that as well as finding a job (that you may need BADLY), you need to find the right job.
If you’re looking for your first job, there must be a reason? Why do you want to do programming? Use the same thinking to find the company that fits. It may be tempting to take the first job to get a foot in the door of the industry, but quickly that job could become a run of the mill daily grind.
If you can, hold off. You’ll know the right one when it comes along.
Not a tip, but here is how I got my first gig. When you are in school start contributing to your favorite open source projects. Take part in mailing lists. That is how I got my first gig. It was a simple Perl script help that leads to getting me an interview and later job too. I hope this helps someone.
Use whatever opportunities you can to build your experience.
Are you entering things manually into a spreadsheet? Build a little VBA app that'll speed up your data entry.
Do you need to do reporting on some spreadsheets? Write a macro (or a console app) that'll take all that information and spit it out into something coherent.
I think its super important, especially in the early days, to take whatever you can. It doesn't need to be a massive custom build app in the latest frameworks (though hell, if you can do that good luck to you!). It just needs to be something demonstrable, where you can prove you've learnt something, and that you're willing to be inventive.
Another thing you can do is to reach out to not-for-profit/charity organisations, and see if there's anything small they need built. A lot of the time, these organisations are strapped for cash and will appreciate any assistance. Before starting any work you still probably want to talk to a lawyer and ensure you're not signing yourself up for trouble.
Apply even though you do not meet the requirements. One requirement of my first programming job was have a degree in computer science, I didn't have it but I got the job because I showed that I had the skills.
Have passion to learn and display it in the interviews. I interview programmers and those who get my attention are those that get excited learning new things, and demonstrate to have skills to learn fast.
Write code: personal projects, experiments, every little piece of code helps to show your skills and what are your areas of interest.