Interview Discussion - April 09, 2018 CS Career Questions |
- Interview Discussion - April 09, 2018
- Daily Chat Thread - April 09, 2018
- A lucrative tech job might not be what you actually want
- Machine Learning Engineers & Machine Learning Researchers in industry: What do you do on a daily basis & what kind of stats, math, tech stack do you use? Several other questions..
- How do you guys deal with being stuck on something, finally fixing it, and then feeling like you have to work OT now because you were stuck for so long?
- Where can I work on something really, really difficult?
- Golden Handcuffs: Update
- The Power Of LinkedIn Networking
- Help a father with a CS-minded son
- Dev Director looking for a change and some advice
- What is a good source for example CS cover letters?
- Accidentally undershot my compensation. Is there any way I can fix this?
- About To Graduate With Pure Mathematics Degree. Unsure of Next Steps.
- Job Hopping limits
- Already wanting old job back after a month, what do I do?
- How should I prepare myself for an internship so that I can get a return offer?
- How can I develop a personal portfolio without coming up with my own project ideas?
- What should a developer with 2 years of experience do?
- What is the most important factor to consider when looking for you first job after college?
- What kind of skills are sought after for a soon-to-be fresh grad?
- Is bootcamp worth it if you have a CS degree?
- UIUC Stats and CS or UMD CS for Banking/Quant Opportunities
- How often do you have to move away to advance your career?
- Computer Vision vs. Computer Graphics/Rendering
- Salesforce Associate Software Engineer difficulty?
- There seems to be a stigma against coding bootcamps, and I've been looking into it alot personally. But why are there so few bad reviews about the big bootcamps?
| Interview Discussion - April 09, 2018 Posted: 09 Apr 2018 12:09 AM PDT Please use this thread to have discussions about interviews, interviewing, and interview prep. Posts focusing solely on interviews created outside of this thread will probably be removed. Abide by the rules, don't be a jerk. This thread is posted each Monday and Thursday at midnight PST. Previous Interview Discussion threads can be found here. [link] [comments] |
| Daily Chat Thread - April 09, 2018 Posted: 09 Apr 2018 12:09 AM PDT Please use this thread to chat, have casual discussions, and ask casual questions. Moderation will be light, but don't be a jerk. This thread is posted every day at midnight PST. Previous Daily Chat Threads can be found here. [link] [comments] |
| A lucrative tech job might not be what you actually want Posted: 09 Apr 2018 05:07 PM PDT Just thinking about this today. I used to pour over this sub; I perfected my resume, got 3 great internships, studied really hard for technical interviews and got pretty much my dream position out of college: 6 figure salary, huge signing bonus, reputable company with a great culture on the east coast. After about 9 months I can tell you that I don't even want to be a software engineer anymore. It's not that exciting to me, and after I got off the treadmill of doing this for the sake of proving to myself and my peers that I could, I realized that CS isn't even what I want to do with my life. Anyways maybe that's not the case for you, but please, ask yourselves if this is what you really want. I've seen a few other posts like this on this sub before, so I know other people have felt this way. Make sure you're chasing that Big 4 job not because of what it says about you, or what your parents or friends think, but because it's what you actually want. [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 09 Apr 2018 02:33 PM PDT To machine learning engineers and researchers in industry. Here are a few general questions, answer it however you'd like. I just figured to bullet point my questions for clarity sake.
[link] [comments] |
| Posted: 09 Apr 2018 04:38 AM PDT EDIT: I read all your replies. Thank you for showing me that being stuck on something is part of what I do. [link] [comments] |
| Where can I work on something really, really difficult? Posted: 09 Apr 2018 07:25 AM PDT Right now I have a fair amount of responsibility and work on somewhat ambiguous tasks, but none of them are hard. I feel like I'm becoming a better software engineer but a dumber computer scientist. I also studied physics in undergrad and I feel like I'm also losing all of my abilities in advanced mathematics and truly abstract reasoning. Where can I work on something that is really, really hard and will keep me sharp/improve my CS/advanced math skills? Do I need a graduate degree if I want to work on something that isn't mind numbing? [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 09 Apr 2018 12:40 PM PDT I posted a little while back and was met with incredulity and scorn, but after a meeting with my boss, he essentially confirmed all of my feelings. After months of doing next to nothing while earning more than I ever have, I was given a raise and a bonus and told that she knows I'm not being utilized but that it would change in the near future. I asked for feedback and got basically nothing back except to keep hanging on. No criticism and no concrete steps to move forward either. So, now I'm confirmed to not have anything useful to do and am earning even more. I've made some small scale attempts to contribute directly (ie, writing some code) which did not generate much enthusiasm. Now I'm just watching training videos to update my skills. [link] [comments] |
| The Power Of LinkedIn Networking Posted: 09 Apr 2018 04:36 PM PDT Something I haven't seen too often on this sub is the mention of LinkedIn and its benefits when trying to fast track your career (internship or full time) prospects. There are tons of post on where to go to apply to certain jobs, or massive list of recommended companies based on the application process, but I feel like the benefits of LinkedIn should never be understated. Some things I have been able to do on LinkedIn that have helped my career:
Recruiters seem to love using LinkedIn and really like it when candidates show initiative and reach out. Additionally, many employers use LinkedIn to weed out and gain perspective on candidates in the application process. What are you opinions and perspectives concerning the professional social networking tool? [link] [comments] |
| Help a father with a CS-minded son Posted: 09 Apr 2018 04:36 PM PDT My son will start at UC Berkeley next year, and I want to make sure he approaches his CS education with mindfulness to being relevant and developing relationships/internships/ opportunities that can help him grow and lead to more. What advice would you give a young programmer just starting at college? And what are the pitfalls to avoid? My sense is that CS is a huge field, encompassing some cool jobs, but many crap ones, and I'd like him to get the best shake he can. [link] [comments] |
| Dev Director looking for a change and some advice Posted: 09 Apr 2018 06:08 PM PDT Hi! I'm a mid-40s technologist who has reached a crossroads in my life - I think I may have taken the wrong career path! I've been a developer for 20+ years, and have been at my current company for about 7 years. I've moved up into management roles over this time (3 years manager with half my time coding), and then about 2 years ago was promoted to Director over an entire area of our software development department with a few teams reporting to me. Part of the job I like, such as being in the inner circle of knowledge and helping make decisions about what direction we go as a company. I also feel like I'm nicely compensated, making ~170k in the DFW market for the job (please someone correct me if this is not a market rate). However, there are some down sides to the job. The first and major one is that the job is about an hour and 15 minutes from my home each direction. When I first started, it was just under an hour, but has gotten worse each year as more folks are on the road. I've noticed that I'm feeling more and more physical effects from the drive, like soreness and fatigue, and even almost dozing off when driving home. This amount of time (2 1/2 hours each day) is also taking me away from other things I would like to be doing, like spending time with my kids and wife, working out, contributing to the community, etc. Our parents are also at that age where we are needing to be involved in helping them with health issues and me being and hour+ away from home causes some issues with scheduling and managing to get parents or kids to the right locations on time. I've also realized that I don't feel very passionate about not coding hardly at all anymore. I got into this field because I loved the problem solving and creativity I felt from coding. I still consult and guide some now, but it's not the same. I've tried to fit in some time when home, but the job itself is a big mental drain and I don't often have the mental energy to work on projects or open source like I was able to do in the past. I also don't like the admin and politics of the job. I need to write ~8-10 reviews each year (clustered at one time with this company), deal with employee issues, personalities that conflict, payroll, the list goes on. I find this type of work a drain. I've always enjoyed technical mentoring and pairing with other developers, but being the boss doesn't light my fire. So I'm considering a change and would love some advice. I've thought about looking for a job much closer to home ( like < 20 minutes away) or 100% remote, and moving back to coding. Perhaps as a principle software engineer or arch role. I'm anticipating that may be a pay cut. I could probably tolerate a small cut, and I know that we have senior engineers working for me making mid-100s. That might be feasible if the other numbers line up with benefits and other compensation. In either 3 or 7 years, the kids would be in a position that I could possibly move closer to the current job, but I don't know if I would want to stay in the Director role since that seems to be an additional drain on my psyche. What would some of you do in my situation? Look for the job closer and shift back down to coding, or stick it out? Or perhaps see if being in a leadership role at a closer company might work? Thanks for your feedback. crossposting with /r/careerguidance/ [link] [comments] |
| What is a good source for example CS cover letters? Posted: 09 Apr 2018 08:21 AM PDT I did a quick google search and the results I'm seeing look super fake and phony. If I received a cover letter like that, I would think the person was a robot. Does anyone know of any good sources? [link] [comments] |
| Accidentally undershot my compensation. Is there any way I can fix this? Posted: 09 Apr 2018 04:07 PM PDT So I responded to a job posting for an Android job that said $100-140k in the ad. I've been interviewing with them for a couple weeks and I believe I'm pretty close to getting an offer. Have just one more round left. The engineering manager asked me how much I'd want in compensation, I mis-remembered what the ad said so I said around $80k would be fine. If they bring up compensation again (if I get an offer) how can I tactfully bring it up higher, without sounding like I'm backtracking? [link] [comments] |
| About To Graduate With Pure Mathematics Degree. Unsure of Next Steps. Posted: 09 Apr 2018 07:49 PM PDT Hey CSCQ, I'm in need of a bit of advice. I'm about to graduate with an undergraduate degree in pure mathematics (honours), and I'm interested in exploring a career in software development. When it comes to internship experience: I have none. I worked part-time in menial roles over the summers, and studied various topics on my own. Over the years, I've picked up a bit of knowledge relevant to a career in CS. I've learned some relevant topics; however, I don't have much experience with applications of what I know because my knowledge mostly comes from a pure mathematics perspective. That is: I've mostly dealt with definitions, theorems, etc., rather than algorithms. Not everything is bleak though. I've worked through about 3/4ths of Volume 1 of The Art of Computer Programming by Knuth, worked through all of The Theory of Computation by Sipser, and read a bit about computer architecture. I can program in C, Python, and (sort of) Racket, but I haven't created any significant projects. Does anyone have any advice about what my first steps should be? Should I get working on projects and start shotgunning my resume? Is grad school for CS an option? Thank you [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 09 Apr 2018 09:16 AM PDT At what point is job hopping too much? This sub is often out there as saying "Look for a new job" but I don't feel like this is really always the answer there are sometimes to button up and deal with it/not jump for a allure of that new new. (The grass is always greener on the other side) I feel like I'm currently in such a situation. I have a job where I have a lot of autonomy working on a legacy codebase, management is largely behind me architecting solutions to fix our problems, and implementing them. It is objectively a good gig, but every once in a while I get these companies reaching out and I feel enticed by the shiny. This company is already working in X technology and they don't have to deal with Y, they have more money and seem to be moving up instead of down, etc etc. The greener pastures over on the other side are appealing, but I've shopped around enough to know that the green is probably spray painted dead grass. Doesn't make it look less appealing though [link] [comments] |
| Already wanting old job back after a month, what do I do? Posted: 09 Apr 2018 01:28 PM PDT So I took a job basically on a whim a few weeks ago. I had only been at my previous company for a 9 months. Upon working at this new job i already hate the culture, people, and on top of it I'm not being given any work. And the work they say that they are going to give me is QA work, which is not what i was hired for (web dev position). I'm now realizing that i had it good with my old job which was much closer to my apartment and had an overall better atmosphere. Should i try and go back? If so, how? [link] [comments] |
| How should I prepare myself for an internship so that I can get a return offer? Posted: 09 Apr 2018 05:40 PM PDT I just got accepted to a Big N internship as a senior right before I graduate. I've never done anything in my prior internships and I don't have any significant projects. Is there any practical advice I can get for the next 2 months that will increase my prospects of getting a return full time offer. [link] [comments] |
| How can I develop a personal portfolio without coming up with my own project ideas? Posted: 09 Apr 2018 02:37 PM PDT I'm a recent graduate struggling to find a job, and I've realized my biggest weakness as an applicant is my lack of a personal portfolio and the skills that it teaches. I'm completely unequipped to talk about past projects and there's no reason for anyone to hire me until I demonstrate I can actually write code. So logically, the solution is to make some projects. I'm willing to do that and since I'm unemployed there's basically no limit to how much time I'll invest in it. The advice I always read to get people started is to "solve a problem in your life" or "build something you think would be interesting" or "do something you're passionate about." But that advice just doesn't work for me. I don't have any hobbies or interests or passions, and I don't find any technology exciting. I need structure. I need to be told what to do. I don't have the creativity or the initiative or the skills to create my own requirements. I was always good at school, and I'm suffering without that guidance and structure. What are some specific things I can do to get programming experience that will make me employable if I can't come up with any ideas? I'm just not capable of that and I don't think I ever will be, but I don't want to give up on finding a job. [link] [comments] |
| What should a developer with 2 years of experience do? Posted: 09 Apr 2018 01:20 PM PDT I've been at this company for almost two years and I have learned a few things. But I also learned that if I want to progress in my career I'll have to leave because there is no career path here at all. Should I be applying to mid level jobs? Or entry level ones? I only ask that because even though I have worked here for a while, I have no idea how much I have really progressed. On my resume itself I don't know if I can discuss my projects because I've had to sign various NDAs for them. This was my first job out of school and other than just applying to jobs I guess I'm not too sure whats next. Thanks! [link] [comments] |
| What is the most important factor to consider when looking for you first job after college? Posted: 09 Apr 2018 09:11 AM PDT |
| What kind of skills are sought after for a soon-to-be fresh grad? Posted: 09 Apr 2018 01:56 PM PDT I'm going to be graduating soon, and thinking about what I want to work as in the future has be worried about a few things. I have some experience working in a small company while studying at uni, but I don't feel like I'm an expert at anything, or even particularly knowledgeable in any tool or field. I've always felt my skills have been rather bare bones, and often lacking, especially when reading some posts here and hearing what people know about networking or security or databases, etc. and I have no idea what they're talking about. My experience has been at a place that is more hardware than software focused, so there isn't a whole lot of emphasis on the software, just as long as it works, it's good, which doesn't exactly help my case. Being relatively new, I'm still exploring the different fields of computer science, and I figured that getting a handle on some of the "hot" skills right now, could help in pushing me in some direction and gaining some level of expertise somewhere. I'd also appreciate it if someone could point me towards some good resources when looking to learn new tools/skills, since Youtube videos don't always seem to cut it. [link] [comments] |
| Is bootcamp worth it if you have a CS degree? Posted: 09 Apr 2018 10:48 AM PDT I'm currently a junior with a major in CS. Though I have had previous internships in web development, I feel like I never properly learned the skills (ReactJS, Node etc) because it's such a short period of time to learn an entire skill set and also create an entire project. However, a bootcamp feels like a waste of money because I can teach myself the languages though it may not be as comprehensive. The alternative would be taking online courses like coursera or udemy. Any comments would be appreciated. [link] [comments] |
| UIUC Stats and CS or UMD CS for Banking/Quant Opportunities Posted: 09 Apr 2018 05:36 PM PDT Hi, I have been admitted into UMD for CS and UIUC for Stats and CS. It has always been a dream of mine to get into banking especially HFT and devising algorithms for banking and finance at big banks and funds such as Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, JP Morgan etc.. Which school would offer the better opportunity to chase my dreams. I am instate at Maryland and I have not received any money from UIUC but cost is not a concern. Your Advice/Thoughts/Ideas/Comments are greatly appreciated. Thanks for your help! [link] [comments] |
| How often do you have to move away to advance your career? Posted: 09 Apr 2018 09:15 AM PDT I'm in kind of a niche position (big data engineer). I find myself hating my job. My boss is the biggest jerk on the planet but I'm having trouble finding any openings in my area. Should I expect to have to move? [link] [comments] |
| Computer Vision vs. Computer Graphics/Rendering Posted: 09 Apr 2018 02:53 PM PDT I'm interested in both fields, and want to eventually go to grad school to study either of those topics. I'm in my late 20s and want to go back to school for Computer Science. I currently work in IT, and my undergrad was in Philosophy. Some of the math courses are out of the way, because I studied analytical philosophy/logic in uni (got a Philosophy BA). In regards to job attainability/future, which niche should I try to focus on? [link] [comments] |
| Salesforce Associate Software Engineer difficulty? Posted: 09 Apr 2018 08:48 PM PDT Guys, I really want to work for Salesforce. I failed the phone screen over a year ago and did not apply to fulltime because I took another job. How is Salesforce interview? What is the way to crack the interview? I hope its easier than Zucks company, RainForest etc. [link] [comments] |
| Posted: 09 Apr 2018 08:38 PM PDT I've been looking at Hack Reactor, Full Stack, and App Academy. I found it suspicious that there are so few bad reviews, so I started to reach out to random alumni from each camp. Everyone seems to love it, although some said the job search can be difficult to get your foot in the door. The people I talked to were lawyers, accountants, fresh college grads, theatre set designers, finance/bankers, construction workers, and many others from different walks of life. They all went to a code bootcamp and made a career change and many tell me its not a bad decision even at this time. The only caveat is that I should take a class or two to see if I truly like it and have some backend knowledge before going to code camp. So why I ask, do code bootcamps have this stigma attached to them, when theres so many happy grads from them that have found jobs? It seems like the people who hate them are those that haven't tried them and given them a fair shot. I've reached out to about many people whether on reddit, through linkedin, or email and everyone seems happy. Every review site gives them hundreds if not thousands of good reviews. I'm picking randoms out of the reviews, and they're real people who endorse their experience heavily. To be fair, I didn't contact many fresh college grads, most of the people I contacted were career switchers, so maybe thats a sample bias? Just trying to get a fuller picture. [link] [comments] |
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