DEV Community: Kartik Choudhary

Getting Jobs and Internships in College: Seizing Off Campus Opportunities

Kartik Choudhary — Mon, 09 Aug 2021 11:14:01 +0000

The most common fear amongst students who avoid going off-campus is that they self-reject themselves by believing their resumes aren't good enough to even be considered.

Combine this fear with the first few rejections you're bound to receive and all of a sudden your imposter syndrome is tap dancing on your confidence, and you realize you don’t even like your career that much.

If you're not even trying, the answer is already a no.

Whether you've just finished your degree but don't have a stable job lined up ahead or you're still in your freshman year exploring options, this article should have you covered.

Before we get started, I'll quickly explain success rate since I'll be using this term throughout the post.

If you're applying to a 100 jobs and only hearing back from 3 of them, your chances of a successful application is at a 3%. This is your success rate and if it's actually lower than 5% then that means you're not doing something right.

(Although this article's writing style is geared towards a student audience, the content applies the same to all beginners regardless of their background)

Why should I consider off-campus or jobs outside my eco-system? 🤔

Because why not, duh...

Not a very convincing argument to start off with, right?
But it actually makes a lot of sense. Putting it simply, if you're prospecting a bigger pool of opportunities, the number of interviews that you'll be invited to will also be higher, which means more options to choose from.

How is it better compared to opportunities at my college? 🏫

Less competition means more opportunities

This might come off as a surprise to some, but the competition is much less and sparse compared to a college scenario where everyone is competing over the same good opportunity.

Better chances of getting a higher paying job

(This point is region specific so take it with a grain of salt)

From what I've observed, most companies in college try to low-ball students for a bare minimum stipend/pay and instead shift focus to their future offer that you'll only receive if you end up working with them full time.

Writing from my experience working globally-remote from India, most of the native organizations pay much less than the standard compared to what you can earn for the same skill-set with an offshore employer.

Possibility of discovering a position you could actually be a perfect match for

The amount of opportunities or positions that you can work for in tech are practically limitless, with even new titles being created for people that fulfill a specific niche.

And because they're limitless, many of us (including me) probably won't know for a good part of our careers about which position we'll really be the 'perfect fit' for. By sticking to just on-campus jobs, you're narrowing down your choices to mostly what the companies want to filter students for, instead of what you'll be the best at.

Diverse companies means opportunity to work on varied problems

There's a much higher variation in the type of companies you can find off-campus apart from the usual three: finance, big tech, and consulting (FTC).

Companies building products such as software tooling, health tech, app security are recruiting and offer salaries similar to entry-level consulting but are completely unbeknownst to the average student.

Getting your foot in the door 👞🚪

(yes I know I'm amazing with emoji art, thank you)

Even if you're the best coder, best at solving questions and building stuff, it won't mean much if you're not getting interviewed.

This is the part where you can retrospect your existing approach, find flaws and boost the current success rate by improving your 'perceived profile'.

Prerequisites before you begin your job hunt 💼🕵️‍♀️

Relentlessness

Getting a job is hard work and building a career in Tech, even more so, which means building a relentless mindset is almost a must-have before going your own way.

You will face failures and rejections, a lot of them. But that's okay because when you get the job, none of the rejections will matter. Also, you would've learnt a lot and would still be treated as an equal to other hires even if they had a +70% success rate.

Well-crafted resume

There are a lot of great resources on resume building just a search away, so I won't be covering details on how to build one here.

Keep in mind that almost everyone builds a basic e-commerce app or a social media clone through their starting years. Although technically impressive, I personally think it doesn't spark interest or shows creativity on a resume anymore.

Remember, to get your resume through the pile of applications, grabbing attention can sometimes be even more valuable than just having a long list of hard skills.

Interpersonal finesse

Good communication, being able to present yourself, showing human traits like vulnerability, emotional intelligence (yes I used the phrase, bite me) etc. are all necessary skills to have throughout your career. This will be needed when you're on the job, networking for referrals, socializing or in any professional environment.

Basically what people are looking for is that you blend well with folks and don't be a pain in the ass while working in a team (make that a general rule for life too while you're at it).

How to increase your success rate 📈

Advertising demonstrated skills

I used the word demonstrated because your work should already be visible and proven before a recruiter even talks to you. At the end, it always comes down to how well you can do the job, and for that you need to make your expertise recognizable.

Mostly before your first scheduled call, the interviewer will go through the provided links and check your online presence to form a profile in mind about the kind of person they should expect.

This is where your Open Source contributions, past projects, hackathons and other pieces of public work that builds your Developer Profile come in and can impress the interviewer before you've even met!

(Read 'How To Build a Developer Profile' if you're new to the idea or don't have one yet)

Tailor your applications

Personalizing applications by writing cover letters isn't a popular practice in India yet due to the high volume of responses from a job posting. However, tailoring your resume to match the specifics of a job description or approaching the recruiter directly with a message explaining your reasons can greatly affect the outcome of your application.

I've always approached the people at a company directly for roles I'm serious about so that they can 'push my resume to the top of the pile' or make sure someone takes a look at it. This can also help narrow down the reasons if my application didn't make the cut since it's difficult to get personalized feedback for every rejection.

Aim realistically

Perform an objective self evaluation of yourself and your skill-set to know which roles or companies you'll fit in with the 'level' you're at. Target companies slightly above your level (because that's how you'll strive to improve and grow) but also remember to set your sights realistically to have a higher success rate.

I got an interview, uhhh step 2?

So you finally got an interview but now you're worried that you have an interview.

Don't worry, here's some tips that will help you have a better control over the interview, so you don't feel like a hostage being interrogated over your knowledge of JavaScript closures.

Having a mental checklist of things to brush up before an interview can really help you become more organized and less nervous during your future interviews.

My personal skill checklist before an interview goes like this:

-> Ready to answer basic DSA questions
-> Revise language/environment specific concepts
-> Brush up on past work/projects on my resume and be able to talk about them

When going through a technical interview, discuss your thinking process. This has almost become a standard advice for all interviews but that is for a reason. Your interviewers are interested to see how you approach a problem, the solution you come up with and how clearly you can explain it to the people in the room. This shows a very important trait in a candidate which is how well you can communicate your ideas or a train of thought to a teammate (which can be more valuable than having a rockstar developer on the team in my opinion).

Getting to the correct answer may not always be the right answer.

Don't be afraid to ask things you don’t understand in an interview. It's much better to ask your interviewer to repeat or explain a question than to try solving a problem with unclear objectives (something you should be comfortable with outside work too).
Showoff by talking about what else you could have done or how you could improve upon your answer if you had more time. If the interview is structured around a take-home assignment, definitely write an answer to this in advance because 9/10 times (source: me) you'll be asked this.
Always prepare to interview your recruiter as much as they're interviewing you. Since this opportunity is going to greatly influence your next steps in life, it is fair that you should have questions.
Having questions regarding the workplace or your exact role are completely expected and normal so don't shy away from preparing a list beforehand. This also shows how much you've prepped for that interview.

(I might publish my personal curated list of interview questions so be on the lookout for that, or you know... you can just follow me :)

Where do I start looking for opportunities?

Assuming you've followed all the steps so far, you should've significantly improved your success rate and are all set to get after jobs. I won't be discussing the usual methods like job boards and similar platforms since they're fairly straight forward but should still be used as a primary source of opportunities.

Hackathons and similar events

Hackathons, apart from looking great on your resume and being a nice learning experience overall, can be the best source for networking and meeting people in the industry as a student.

And how do you find hackathons outside college? Just go take a quick look at Devpost or MLH events page, they're happening all the time! These events can also be great for meeting and collaborating with other interesting people starting out in tech like you.

Community & Socials

Sometimes there are urgent job openings at companies that they prefer to only share through Twitter or some other social platform instead of following the usual process. Although you can directly interact with the recruiter for an introduction or questions, asking for a referral from a mutual connection can be a good strategy to expedite the process even further.

Actively observe platforms like LinkedIn or Twitter where you can learn from other people in the industry and also be on the lookout for any opportunities that you may find through them.

Networking & Referrals

Networking can sound very intimidating if you're new to the act but can become the strongest skill on your toolbelt if done right. Meeting new folks and maintaining relationships will be your safety net throughout your career in Tech.

So, where can you start networking? As of now (during the pandemic) events, hackathons, socials and LinkedIn will be your best bet. Remember, your goal is to build relationships with professional strangers and make a lasting impression on them. Send a connection request talking about what you like about someone's work, praise a project they worked on and how it helped you (find anything in common that you think you could talk about).

Having strong networks can come in to the rescue whenever you need a job throughout your career, not just for your first one.

(Avoid coming off as creepy while messaging someone, don't write anything you wouldn't want the world to read)

Keep the door open for opportunities

Instead of just searching for jobs yourself, also keep a channel open for opportunities to come to you. If someone is impressed by your work and has an interesting proposition, provide them with the means to reach out to you from every profile.

I've had countless job offers or consultancy proposals through my GitHub profile and portfolio because I keep an option for anyone interested to directly contact me through email.

Closing remarks

If you've been doing alright in your exams and have built a thing or two, your resume is already good enough to start sending to companies. Obviously there's always room for improvement but don't become the reason that limits your own chances of success (writing this from experience, I've been that person to myself for a long time).

The meme apart from being an attempt to spice things up in the end, is also a reminder that like most posts, some advice is just that, advice.

Take whatever value you find from this piece (or any content that you come across on the Internet) and apply it accordingly in your situation instead of blindly following it because it worked for someone.

If you still have any questions or are confused with something, feel free to reach out to me through Twitter or LinkedIn, I'll be happy to help.

Remember, don't cloud your thoughts with consistent self doubt because you're amazing and I believe in you! :D

Building a Developer Profile using Open Source

Kartik Choudhary — Mon, 05 Oct 2020 05:42:26 +0000

We’ve all stalked those 'cool' developers we found out about from their works on crucial software. Digging deeper into their past achievements, the levels of woah keep increasing. This first impression you’ve formed of the person, about their skills, competence and influence, is their developer profile.

Why do I need a developer profile?

In an industry where attention economy dictates the opportunities you get, there’s a strong need to build your brand to increase your prospects. This further affects your network and outreach, as it is usually limited to your ecosystem (your city, workplace or friends).

Being someone who's known as an expert in their skill set, with a reputation of producing good work, is the long term goal I want to convince you to set for yourself by the end of this post.

How would this help me?

The coming generation of developers is already using various ways to market themselves and their work. To keep up, we need to improve our strategies and modernize our game plan.

The best way to get highlighted as an expert developer is building your niche in a particular technology. Active participation along with good reputation greatly boosts your portfolio. All of this can be rewarding towards finding clients (if you're a freelancer) or recruiters to potentially see you as a valuable hire!

How does Open Source fit here?

Although Open Source is built on both collaboration and transparency, the latter is what grants you the boon of visibility. Anyone can follow your work and recognize your contributions to the developer community. This provides you with ample exposure and feedback while also making great connections along the way.

The benefits of participating in open source can be different based on your (subjective) skill level. I'll divide experience in three tiers and talk about the merits of building a profile for all of them.

For Beginners 👩‍🎓

Open source is a great opportunity to work on production code while still learning. It might be difficult to start off directly with vast codebases, but we can certainly work towards making that accessible. A good approach would be starting off with smaller or personal projects and focus on learning. Remember, the climb is slow and difficult, but very rewarding once you are at the top!

Additionally, check if you are eligible to apply for programs that support open source like the MLH Fellowship (a really great collaborative learning experience for students), GSOC (highly competitive, make sure you can invest the time), Outreachy etc.

However, as good as all of this sounds for a budding developer, there are some assumed prerequisites for all of us. You should be experienced with the workflow, ethics and civility followed in open source. You should also be well versed with the domain you're contributing to so maintainers don't have to do much hand-holding to get your work merged (they're people with responsibilities too!).

For adept Devs (somewhere in between) 👨‍💻

This is a really interesting place to be in while working on your profile. You're experienced enough to start building software and libraries on your own, while still having a good margin of learning to be had from the experience.

You may start working on community-focused projects (no more writing code for your eyes only!) or have some plans for building software on your own. Working on a large project with people to mentor you is really great for personal growth. Additionally, you should focus on amplifying the impact and get recognition for the good you're doing for the community.

For experienced Developers 🐱‍💻

Veteran developers might think having work experience would make their future job endeavors a breeze, or that open source isn't worth investing into because it can't be easily monetized. While that's true to some extent, participating in open source can lead to much extensive outcomes.

You'll gain collaborative development experience, build a reputation among other developers in your niche and achieve recognition for the software you've worked on. If your project reaches a certain level of attention, you are most likely to get lucrative professional opportunities, with the added fame of building a successful project, of course.

Using OS to build my profile sounds uncommon...

Claiming all Open Source developers to be solely working for benevolence and FOSS enthusiast jingoism would be a disservice to the people who are also building their reputation from it.

While the drive to help the community may be the primary reason most people work on open source projects, there is nothing wrong with having personal goals along the way.

But I'm not a genius programmer...

This is a common misconception among the uninitiated, primarily students, new contributors and developers who are foreign to the concept of building open software.

Most contributors are everyday people with responsibilities, just like you, who take out time to manage or build upon their side projects. So if you're wondering that you don't 'Eat, Sleep, Code' enough to fit in, don't worry you'll fit in like a glove.

The bare minimum to jump in and get building are finding a platform that works for you (Although GitHub is the most popular platform for OS collaboration) and knowing a language well enough to print FizzBuzz in.

I started my journey in Open Source with no formal introduction. Lots of 'oopsies' and almost 2 years later, I think I'm doing good with a long journey of contributing ahead of me!

Great, you've laid a strong foundation!

If you've been successfully contributing to open source and have a history of doing good work, now you can start the real climb.

Assuming you've been building on some software or tooling, you can amplify the influence of your work by using some of the following methods.

Hosting Workshops/Giving talks at Conferences 🎤

This blog from Josh Comeau accurately explains how to prepare for conference talks, I suggest giving it a read before applying to speak at one.

Perfecting a talk can be severely time consuming but if done right, it can really boost your standing among the developer community. I've personally never spoken at a large conference yet ( haven't struck on anything that interesting to bore an audience with :) but I've held a few talks and workshops at local meetups.

Write Tech Blogs ✍

If you've been building software, open or closed, blogging is one of the most effective ways to share your ideas and experiences. It's quick to write, easy to consume and can reach a bigger audience.

You can cater to different kinds of readers with what you write. Blogs can be highly technical, for readers who want to grab a cup and take a deep dive into a topic. They can also be a documentation of your perspective on a topic or in some cases, like this blog, advice you wish your past self had read a year earlier.

Writing about what you've been working on can also act as an introduction, or explain your project to anyone interested in knowing more about it. This could create potential contributors and motivate you to continue building, if you feel like abandoning it.

Expectations-Driven Profile Building 👁‍🗨

I probably coined this term, remember my name in history folks!

A crucial part of profile building that a vast majority have been overlooking (including myself, until recently) is not talking about your work. Announce to the world that you've started a side project. Build a following, keep everyone posted on your progress, talk about when everyone will be able to see/use it. You might even attract some contributors to help you out!

An outcome to watch out with this approach is over-promising and under-delivering. Don't set the expected deliverables too high that you can't reach yourself. Remember, disappointment could leave a bigger mark on your reputation than achievements.

Building an Audience 👨‍🎤

The domain you become skilled at and the work you produce, defines the niche people will recognize you for.

Stay up-to date with the newest relevant tech and talk about it from your own perspective. This provides people with a fresh take on trending topics, which is good for increasing engagement.

Remember, consistency and clarity about your domain is necessary when building your audience. People should know exactly what you and your work are all about, so they can decide if they want more of your content or be a part of your progress.

Know what audience is right for the content you serve and optimize for it. An example, providing perspective on a new tech on LinkedIn won't reciprocate the same response you would get on tech Twitter. Some platforms with great growth potential for building a tech community are Twitter, YouTube, Dev.to and Hackernews.

Conclusion ✨

*I added a meme so you know I mean business now*

Before you're all pumped up to become a well known rock star Open Source developer, I'd like to make it clear that all of this will take time. There's no substitute to the grind but all of the these efforts will compound over time and you'll see all the progress you've made soon.

Remember that every little commit you make, every new connection you form or organization you're invited to, is taking you in the right direction.

If you've made it this far, I'd like to thank you for taking the time to read through some of my learning ever since I've actively started developing publicly.

I'd like to write more posts from my experiences but to hone my writing skills I'd really appreciate feedback from you, the reader. I hope my advice aligns with your goals and helps you grow effectively as a developer :)

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