How did you find your first (real) job?

hobochris

I was hired off my Cv pretty much.

I am very good at selling myself(apparently), Put my cv up on a job site and got a call a few days later to organize an interview, At the end of the interview they offered me the job on the spot(I took at and started after I graduated), I've now been here just under two years working as .Net developer.

When things get a little better I plan to move to java as I enjoy working with it more then .Net.

toiletduck

john47832 wrote: »

If you like you could create a Calculator using swing java UI, just 4 operatives, im thinking + - * and % : and numbers 0-9 - would appreciate if it coud be done by 10th DEC

I would... not like if it's all the same. I've served my time developing that exact same app in Javascript, Java, C++, PHP... Now it's your turn

mark renton

http://www.javabeginner.com/java-swing/java-swing-calculator

cant get a smiley face big enough

mcmoustache

toiletduck wrote: »

Just a quick question. When people are mentioning personal projects, what kinda apps did ye develop?

I mean I have little projects on the side (e.g. a program to scan a specific folder for movie files and write out the contents to a html file, extending it to make use of a GUI...) but nothing that I would consider 'big', more just handy bits and bobs. As well as curiosity, I suppose I'm also looking for inspiration

Put some screenshots and a brief description of the projects in with your CV. It doesn't matter how big they are. Potential employers will probably question you a little about them and you'll come across confident when speaking about your own projects. Even if your progs are only for yourself, it shows that you are interested in coding. There's nothing wrong with "handy bits and bobs".

mcmoustache

Edit: Scrap that john47832, I see you found it already. I should point out that it doesn't do modulo operations (%);).

bringitdown

My first job was back in the heady days of 2000, I had a pick of 5/6 offers from software houses to consultancies. Anyway that is not going to happen again any time soon.

It is definitely a thing that software companies increasingly look for not only good academic records, but as people have pointed out, non-academic projects and certain personality traits when choosing 'grads'. They can afford to be picky now.

It can feel like a Catch-22 but if you apply yourself and show that while yes it is a job, that you have some passion for it and some degree of awareness for the big picture.

I remember one interviewer in 2000 saying I was the first person who knew about SCM and tools like CVS/Sourcesafe. To me that is shocking because its fundamental. It's like an engineer not knowing what a level is ... as I said those days are gone and that is not necessarily a bad thing.

d4v1d

i've been developing for about 8 years now and only last year decided to go to college to get 'qualified' to do it. the college thing is only for getting future interviews. there's not much in it that i would find useful at all compared to the work experience i have.

anyway, if i were to go looking for a development job there are a few things that i would make sure i could demonstrate in an interview.

1. an understanding of source (quality) control. from what i see in college this is never really covered and is quite important. download cvs or some other source control tools and get familiar with version control.

2. be able to document your projects. it's one thing being able to write great code but if you can't write a clear document to give to a customer then you're in trouble.

3. the most important thing is to understand your own code inside out. it's one thing taking some code from the net (everyone does it) but you must understand exactly what it is you are using otherwise you'll be screwed if someone asks you about it. just saying you copied it and it works doesn't cut it.

just my minor observations. some of these things may have been covered in other college courses that i'm not aware of.

Atomic Pineapple

I've just been offered my first job since finishing college in May

Heres how I got it.

I done my final year project on Android.

Built a website detailing what I done in my final year project and my thoughts on Android.

Someone from the company came across my website when looking for Android info.

They contacted me, had a phone interview. Then a face to face interview where I demo'd my Android app and just got offered the job today

Never even applied for the position, they found me, so that shows the positives of creating stuff and putting it out there for people to see!

Scary now actually moving into a real commercial world

Webmonkey

draffodx wrote: »

I've just been offered my first job since finishing college in May

Heres how I got it.

I done my final year project on Android.

Built a website detailing what I done in my final year project and my thoughts on Android.

Someone from the company came across my website when looking for Android info.

They contacted me, had a phone interview. Then a face to face interview where I demo'd my Android app and just got offered the job today

Never even applied for the position, they found me, so that shows the positives of creating stuff and putting it out there for people to see!

Scary now actually moving into a real commercial world

Indeed. I blogged my FYP and got 3 companies contacting me! Well worth the extra bit of effort imo.

It's a plus to them find you.

Congrats by the way!

CuLT

Wow, sweet

Fair play to ya draffodx! Congrats!

cornbb

draffodx wrote: »

I've just been offered my first job since finishing college in May

Heres how I got it.

I done my final year project on Android.

Built a website detailing what I done in my final year project and my thoughts on Android.

Someone from the company came across my website when looking for Android info.

They contacted me, had a phone interview. Then a face to face interview where I demo'd my Android app and just got offered the job today

Never even applied for the position, they found me, so that shows the positives of creating stuff and putting it out there for people to see!

Scary now actually moving into a real commercial world

Well done and good for you I would strongly encourage people looking for their start to get into mobile app development. I spent a while writing iPhone apps, even after I moved on from that I was getting a ton of phonecalls/emails from potential clients who apparently can't get developers for love nor money. Just a suggestion

Reku

draffodx wrote: »

I've just been offered my first job since finishing college in May

Heres how I got it.

I done my final year project on Android.

Built a website detailing what I done in my final year project and my thoughts on Android.

Someone from the company came across my website when looking for Android info.

They contacted me, had a phone interview. Then a face to face interview where I demo'd my Android app and just got offered the job today

Never even applied for the position, they found me, so that shows the positives of creating stuff and putting it out there for people to see!

Scary now actually moving into a real commercial world

Grats, hopefully the experience will serve you well and that'll be your last significant period of unemployment.:)

A big problem for me is knowing what languages/information/tools to focus on jobs wise since even "graduate" jobs seem to tend to require quite a few languages, tools and frameworks, often in combinations which I've been told by a few folks that the average CS graduate would not usually have most of under their belts. Having done just a grad dip in IT (1 year as opposed to 4 years) I'm playing catch-up as well so at times it does feel a bit like pissing against the wind.
At least the more I study the more little tricks and such I pick up.:)

On the topic of mobile apps, while many of you may already know about this I figure I might as well mention it in case there are any folks out there with great ideas but insufficient motivation
Vodafone App Star Challenge
€1million prize fund available with top prizes of €100,000 for best application.

Kila

I have been thinking about this one for a few days, and wrote a blog about it (http://www.zenbuffy.com/2009/12/show-me-the-love/)

In summary (in case you don't want to read the original), I think that you need to build up a portfolio or a group of projects outside of your bare course requirements. I think you need to show a genuine interest in the field, and not just an interest in a job (any job!). I think that this will set you apart from other graduates, because it will mean that you have some experience beyond the course you've done.

Then put yourself out there. Get on sites like LinkedIn, maybe set up a blog, put your cv up on job websites, and build an online presence.

Hope that helps a bit.

Webmonkey

Kila wrote: »

I have been thinking about this one for a few days, and wrote a blog about it (http://www.zenbuffy.com/2009/12/show-me-the-love/)

In summary (in case you don't want to read the original), I think that you need to build up a portfolio or a group of projects outside of your bare course requirements. I think you need to show a genuine interest in the field, and not just an interest in a job (any job!). I think that this will set you apart from other graduates, because it will mean that you have some experience beyond the course you've done.

Then put yourself out there. Get on sites like LinkedIn, maybe set up a blog, put your cv up on job websites, and build an online presence.

Hope that helps a bit.

We are currently trying to get a coders.ie site up and running. By contributing to projects on this in the future, it should also help people as it demonstrates a definite interest in the area.