If X=What Then You_Can_Find_Job=True ?

[rafhelp]

What do you need to get a job in Programming.

I have been programming since the days of commodore 64. I have basic, Amos Professional on the Amiga and like over 10 different programming languages on the PC.

I am educated to degree level but its not related to IT. But I have of experience in IT. I also have a basic programming qualification in VB.Net which I passed with top marks. But everything else is self taught. I have made about 10 or more Pc applications most using vb.net. I have made games and web based software using HTML5. I have written PHP scripts that work with HTML sites and MYSQL servers.

But still this would not be enough to get me even an entry level job in programming or would it?

I find if i find a entry level job, then they asking for other techs I do not know like ASP.NET or python or ajax.

[Hack]

Perseverance will get you a job.

Apply for every entry level job in programming that you find. I don't care what qualifications, in terms of technical background, they are looking for....if it is an entry level job in programming, submit your resume.

Interview
Interview
and Interview some more

Whether you would like the job or not is irrelevent. You need to get your foot in the door so take whatever you get offered......that will build experience which will eventually get you to where you want to go.

But, right now, at this moment in time, your mantra is:

Apply
Interview
Apply
Interview
Apply
Interview
etc
etc

Thats it!

[masta9205990]

If X=What Then You_Can_Find_Job=True ?
solution
X = interval (0.01) then Wait = True

[MMock]

I've been programming professionally since I graduated college in 1984. When my first daughter was born in 1999, I was out on maternity leave then went back to work six weeks later. It was kind of depressing not being with her. By the time she was 11 months old, my husband had gotten a better paying job so I resigned.

Then I had my second daughter in 2001. Then when she started pre-K in 2005 I think was when I wanted to go back to work. It was very difficult to get a jpb, so I believe I was in the same situation as you are now. Only I hadn't been actively programming any kind of hobby stuff or anything (that really wasn't the point of resigning - it was so I didn't have to write code and could focus on my children). I had a lot of interviews, I interviewed with previous employers, new employers, employers that I heard about from previous co-workers, etc. At first I was asking for too much money (because my husband and I were going to switch roles and he was going to be the stay-at-home parent so I tried to replace his income. Ha, ha - I see now how unlikely that was!) Then he got another new job so the pressure of making a good income was off. Then I got an email about a job six miles from home (I've usually commuted at least 20 miles one way). I answered the ad point by point, saying what I was qualified in and what I was not. It also said send your salary requirements - no one will be considered unless they include this. I actually said I had no salary requirements! I didn't - we had been living on one income, so it didn't really matter what I made. The CEO jumped all over that one! I went in and interviewed, he decided to give me a one-week contract for something a customer needed (they weren't a consulting company but he helped out some of his friends when they needed an extra hand) so I did that, I could tell he was still hesitant about hiring me to do work for him because it was a small company without much leniency for a learning curve - but he ended up making an offer. I said to myself "please let it be at least $nn,nnn annual and that's exactly what he offered! Anyway, it got my foot in the door (again) and I was so happy to be working and yes I had a lot to learn - six or seven years makes a big difference in this profession!

You have the right attitude about going in entry level. Just be honest and respectful and prove you're a hard-worker and deserve to have a chance taken on you - you will succeed. The economy is tough right now so you might have an edge wanting to go in entry level just like me when I had "no salary requirements". Good luck!

[FunkyDexter]

Apply
Interview
Apply
Interview
Apply
Interview
etc

Really, Hack, put it in a loop, man!

As Hack said, perseverance is the biggest thing. And the other thing is, don't wait for them to come to you. Don't go looking for ads in the paper and on line and don't sign up with agencies. Actually that's not right. You should do those things just in case but be prepared for the fact that it won't work. If you go down those routes you're competing with the world and his brother and your application will dissapear in the morass. Instead you should be picking up the business directory and phoning up every number that's under the "software" section. Or any other section if you think they might have a development section (insurance companies, for example).

You want to speak to the person who might hire a programmer, typically the development manager but they go under a variety of titles. You do NOT want to speak to HR and your initial obstacle will be the receptionist. Develop strategies for getting to the right person. I used to phone up and speak to the receptionist. I'd flat out ask, "I'm a programmer looking for work, who's the person who would make a decision like that". The receptionist would inevitable field my call and there was no chance they'd let me speak to them but they usually would give me an email address to send my CV to... and in most organisations a persons email address is their name. Send in your CV and phone back a week later asking for the person you want by name, this time the receptionist will probably put you through because they'll assume you had a prior reason for calling.

Once you're speaking to the right person you'll be amazed how positive they are. Even if they don't have a job to offer you they'll usually be encouraging and they're usually impressed by the fact that you had the gumption to actually go looking for a position rather than waiting for one to turn up. I had positions created especially for me twice using this aproach because thought I was the "kind of go-getter we want in our team" (little did they know). Just be prepared for the fact that you might be made redundant 6 months later when they realise they didn't actually have any work for you to do after all, but by then it won't matter because you're CV will be saying "this guys an experienced programmer" and the doors will be opening all around you.

Most of all, remember it's a numbers game. You're going to have to trawl through a bunch of one-man-bands and big companies who will chuck you straight to HR (which is a black hole) but I reckon any time you're speaking to the genuine decision maker you've got a 2 to 5 % chance of ultimately getting hired. That means you'll have to reach them 20 to 50 times before you actually land a role but you can achieve that within a few weeks if you're willing to put the effort in.

Good Luck

[techgnome]

I agree with some of what Funky suggested... I disagree with skipping agencies though... I've had good success with them. Their recruiters generally deal with the hiring/dept managers directly, not HR... but going through an agency/consulting/recruitment firms doesn't mean you can't also do the work yourself. First job I got after the Air Force was through a consulting/recruitment firm, the next one after that, I found on my own, even while working with a couple of recruiters at the same time, and my current one also came through a consulting firm. If you aren't afraid to move (which is what happened to me when I took this job) then firms with a national base are not a bad way to go. They can reach into places you normally wouldn't think to go. Not just in locale, but also industries.

I do take exception to Hack's loop though...there's usually a lot more Apply iterations prior to the Interview loop.... :P

-tg

[dee-u]

You want to speak to the person who might hire a programmer, typically the development manager but they go under a variety of titles. You do NOT want to speak to HR and your initial obstacle will be the receptionist. Develop strategies for getting to the right person. I used to phone up and speak to the receptionist. I'd flat out ask, "I'm a programmer looking for work, who's the person who would make a decision like that". The receptionist would inevitable field my call and there was no chance they'd let me speak to them but they usually would give me an email address to send my CV to... and in most organisations a persons email address is their name. Send in your CV and phone back a week later asking for the person you want by name, this time the receptionist will probably put you through because they'll assume you had a prior reason for calling.

I used to send resumes to hr's of company's even if they did not have an opening for a programmer. One day I got a call from the I.T. manager of one of those company. I was lucky that he was able to browse my email since it was being forwarded to their department and that their programmer was just fired. That was my first stint as a programmer. =)