Finding a new programming job when my actual experience is limited/narrow.

November 8, 2007 6:53 AM

I need a new job, but I'm not sure what potential employers will make of my qualifications. While I have a technology related degree (Electronic Engineering), I am looking for a software job. I think that my lack of a software degree combined with the fact that I currently work in a pretty narrow field of software development may hamper my chances of of getting a job in another area of programming and so I need advice on improving how I look on paper.

I've spent the last 2 to 3 years doing real time embedded Linux kernel programming for a tech startup. I've only ever worked for startups, and as such have often gotten my foot in the door through a combination of connections and reputation. While I was in college, I worked part time for another embedded startup for a year, so in terms of C, I'm quite solid, but that's not necessarily what I want to do going forward. Any programming job, other than web development, would do me just fine.

On top of the day job, I've done some casual contract programming over the years in C++, C#, Python and occasionally some LAMP type stuff. I'm a fast learner and fully believe I can turn my hand to any programming task I'm given, but convincing a potential employer of this may not be easy.

I've decided not to leave my job until the new year, probably February, which gives me time to maybe build up some sort of portfolio of work to prove my abilities, but I don't really know where to start. So what should I do to make myself look better on paper? Particularly to a non-startup - I'm a tad burned out from the mis-management that seems inherent in < 10 man companies.

posted by leakymem to Work & Money (9 answers total)

Half the software engineers where I work have EE degrees. With obvious caveats like "I am not your prospective employer," I'd actually say you're in fine shape. Especially after 2-3 years of software work, plus lots of casual contact with some higher-level languages, the fact that you had an EE instead of, say, CS degree is really not going to be a serious barrier.
posted by Tomorrowful at 7:13 AM on November 8, 2007

Don't overlook solid C skills. As Perl/Python/Ruby/Java/C#/PHP/etc. become more and more mainstream, people who really understand C and all of the ugliness of memory management become increasingly more important. And while C may not get a lot of press because very few people write business apps or web apps in it, there is a ton of C out there and more being written everyday.
posted by mmascolino at 7:15 AM on November 8, 2007

Response by poster: I should perhaps add that I'm in Ireland and so the pool of available jobs isn't huge, particularly in the area of C programming. I'd like to reassure prospective employers that I'm not "just" a C programmer.
posted by leakymem at 7:24 AM on November 8, 2007

I work in this field. It's important to note that resume scanning is often automated these days, so a longer resume with lots of keywords is what you want to present; you want to be sure to pop up on every relevant search. And make sure you have every technology you know listed (it helps to add your level of familiarity).
posted by carrienation at 7:26 AM on November 8, 2007

I'm a CS major myself, and I'd take a EE over most of your typical CS majors for a programmer job. If you've spent 3 years developing in C for an embedded system, there is not much else you couldn't pick up very quickly.
posted by AaRdVarK at 7:40 AM on November 8, 2007

Dude, your qualifications are excellent. Any employer you'd actually want to work for understands that transitioning someone from embedded/C to another language/platform is better than hiring some PHP/Ruby hacker, because you already grok the hard parts.

My suggestion to you would be to pick up either C# or Java, and build a database-driven web app (Do you know SQL? If not, learn that first, ASAP). It doesn't need to be super amazing, but enough to show that you can work within that framework. It helps a lot if it's an app you actually use, not just some demo app that has some dummy data in it.
posted by mkultra at 8:13 AM on November 8, 2007

The Google.com engineering team would be a great fit. They look for: Solid C skills, Networking know how, Linux internals & administration, DB skills, etc...

Your experience with real-time would be a huge plus.

I know for a fact they're hiring, so you might want to apply.
posted by zap rowsdower at 8:15 AM on November 8, 2007

Response by poster: mkultra, I wrote a C# desktop front end, and Perl web based front end for a MySQL DB for a local non-profit a while back. A fist full of users tracking information for ~500 accounts. I also did a PHP/MySQL based stock tracking system for a local engineering firm. Neither is "enterprise class" but could probably look nice with a bit of polish.

I'd actually forgotten about those. Definitely time to start actually writing that CV.
posted by leakymem at 8:21 AM on November 8, 2007

Best answer: You shouldn't have too much of a problem, at least in the states you wouldn't. Just keep plugging away.

I will add one caveat. These days, generalists are not usually in demand. Most businesses like to hire the guy who specializes in whatever tech they want to use anyway. I think this is a bad trend as it limits the scope of potential solutions and forces narrow skillsets onto workers. You can work around it by creating slightly different resumes that omit possible experience that makes you look too "general."

Good luck!
posted by chairface at 11:31 AM on November 8, 2007