Big 4 Discussion - December 03, 2017 CS Career Questions |
- Big 4 Discussion - December 03, 2017
- Daily Chat Thread - December 03, 2017
- How to get a job in Software Engineering.
- Doctor turned self-taught programmer looking to get into blockchain development
- What are some unethical things you've seen in this business? Are they common?
- People say the best way to find a new job opportunity is through networking. But what exactly does this even look like ?
- Esri: Does anyone work here? Has anyone started out in one of the analyst role and transitioned to more dev-based positions?
- Learned quite a bit of programming on my own over the past few years, now what?
- How often are you asked to flatten a memoized recursive DP solution to an iterative one?
- What's the best way to find meaningful mentorship as a new Software Engineer.
- Should I take a promotion to lead for a team less aligned to my interests?
- Is being a community college student the reason why my response rate for CS internships is low?
- Can only work remotely -- which field?
- To all my fellow devs, how did you pivot your career?
- If one values low working hours and a higher chance of crisis resistance, over high salaries and working for big companies, what are good areas to specialize in as early as college?
- What are some job benefits specific to the industry you work in?
- CS, CE, or ECE?
- Data Science & Data Engineering CV
- No more entry level?!
- Should I change major?
- [Therapeutic Rant] Feeling lost after 2+ years in the workforce
- Will be laid off in 3 months and freaking out. Wondering if it's possible to make a transition into programming with self-paced efforts.
- What's the point of tech recruiters from recruiting agencies?
- What books would you recommend to give a graduating CS student?
- Lyft internship process
- Palantir new grad offer
- When will I be ready to start applying to the big companies?
| Big 4 Discussion - December 03, 2017 Posted: 02 Dec 2017 11:07 PM PST Please use this thread to have discussions about the Big 4 and questions related to the Big 4, such as which one offers the best doggy benefits, or how many companies are in the Big 4 really? Posts focusing solely on Big 4 created outside of this thread will probably be removed. Abide by the rules, don't be a jerk. This thread is posted each Sunday and Wednesday at midnight PST. Previous Big 4 Discussion threads can be found here. [link] [comments]  |
| Daily Chat Thread - December 03, 2017 Posted: 02 Dec 2017 11:07 PM PST 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]  |
| How to get a job in Software Engineering. Posted: 03 Dec 2017 01:45 PM PST Hello /r/cscareerquestions. I've followed this reddit for several years as I went through my undergraduate degree and then transitioned to full-time in software development. Over and over I see the same patterns mentioned here that are not accurate to the current industry. And its destructive to the community of aspiring software developers who are mislead into believing a lot of generalizations that don't accurately portray the industry. So I'll put some advice out there for those who want to read. Feel free to be skeptical as these are just my observations of the industry. Background: (Mods, I can verify this information upon request). I am a mid-senior level Java Developer in Austin, TX with most of my work with web services and back-end architecture and development in JavaEE7. I graduated cum laude from a non-elite state university in Florida, which is known for really bad computer science programs. I currently work for a startup as a Java Developer and am pursuing an MBA. Anyway, enough about me. This post is about you.
Answer: Let's rephrase this question. Do you want a job as a software developer in those fields? If not, then take them only if you're interested in the subject.
Answer: Take courses in school that teach software engineering or design. Learn object oriented programming, design patterns, and software architecture patterns. If your university offers classes that teach these concepts, don't hesitate to take them. I sacrificed taking Artificial Intelligence for a course on Object Oriented Design Patterns. Everyone looked at me like I was an idiot. It was the best course I took in my undergrad.
Answer: Let's restate the question. Do you need a masters to get a job? Maybe you want to work with really new stuff like data science and machine learning. If so, a master may not hurt as you can take classes and do research on whatever speciality you want. In the mean time, a bachelors in CS is perfectly acceptable for opportunities for most regions in the United States. Also, a masters should be something you want to do. Furthering your education is something you have to consciously want. Fortunately in software development, most places don't make it a strict requirement for a masters. So in the mean time, you're all free to graduate without worry for job opportunities.
Answer: No, you don't need an internship. I have several friends from undergrad doing very well and never left school with any development background. However, try to get them if you can! Target your junior and senior years in computer science for internships. It's okay if you do only one! I had a friend who completed 4 internships and has turned out the same as my other successful friends with no internships. The number doesn't matter. The experience does.
Answer: I have seen several of my friends in this position. Easy answer is to work on side projects. Pick some technology stack that you'd like to learn (i.e., MEAN Stack - MongoDB, ExpressJS, Angular, and NodeJS is hot right now) and make a project out of it. Web-based projects or apps are nice as they can be easily presented during an interview. It can be any project really. If you're stuck on ideas, try making a small scale social network. It doesn't need to be perfect. It just needs to showcase that you learned some skills in software development.
Answer: Github, gitlab, bitbucket, it's all the same. It's never bad to host your non-academic projects. If you're familiar with version control systems, then yes use github or whatever service you prefer to show off projects and be sure to have that information on your resume.
Answer: It doesn't matter where you work. What matters is what experience that you gain from them. Maybe you got an internship with Snap Inc. Awesome! First question you'd get asked in an interview is what did you do. Maybe you were like my friend at <Insert Big N company> who documented APIs. Does that experience directly help you on learning software development? If so, awesome! The goal is to gain experience in the field you want to target. The name is irrelevant. That being said, it's better to be a big fish in a small pond than a small fish in a large one. I have worked full time for a big fortune 500 enterprise and found the experience gained was minuscule compared to the startups and small companies I have worked for.
Answer: This answer highly depends on (1) the companies you are interviewing for and (2) the region in which you are targeting these opportunities. Here in Austin, some companies require algorithm interviews in person while others do not. My friends in San Fransisco and Seattle are only finding interviews with algorithm questions. Do you need to know them? Yes, unfortunately many companies require this as a "measure" of experience. While it's a topic of debate which causes a lot of contention, it's important to focus on algorithms WHILE continuing to focus on software development experience and technologies.
Answer: Most great resumes I've seen have (1) work experience, (2) projects, (3) education, (4) contact information. A typical format for a job opportunity or project would consist of maybe 2-4 bullets of technical things you've done and a last bullet of technologies used. Remember, don't make your resume a job description. Make these bullets about what you DID. Ex: * Developed REST web service APIs for an accounting system. * Wrote back-end code leveraging Java 8 features including streams and lambdas. * Utilized test-driven development through utilizing JUnit unit testing. * JavaEE 7, Java 8, JUnit, <insert other technologies> Summary: If you want a job when you graduate, focus on getting yourself there. Build your resume, write projects or go for internships, and take classes that help you go towards your goal for a career. Hopefully this helps some of you aspiring engineers. Feel free to ask questions and I'll answer them. Edit: Formatting [link] [comments]  |
| Doctor turned self-taught programmer looking to get into blockchain development Posted: 03 Dec 2017 07:51 AM PST Some time last year after spending 10 years in medicine (6 in med school and 4 years working), I decided to call it quits and transition into tech. I dedicated the entire year teaching myself to code. The initial learning curve was tough and I wanted to quit many times (med school was easy compared to this!) But I kept grinding and I've now managed to get through most of the Front-End, Data Visualisation and Back-End projects on FreeCodeCamp. (You can check them out [here](www.drjosephliu.com) ) My goal is to work in blockchain development and eventually in the healthcare-related blockchain space. It's what I'm most interested in and so far I've begun dabbling in a few ethereum dapp courses offered on Udemy. After looking around at several job postings sites however, I'm worried that my lack of work experience and formal computer science education will hinder my chances of landing a job.
Also, even though I love programming, I really really really hate the theoretical and mathematical side to it. I'm more of a 'practical' person who loves to learn by doing. However, I know being able to understand and explain the theory and solve mathematical puzzles is part and parcel to the hiring process.
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| What are some unethical things you've seen in this business? Are they common? Posted: 03 Dec 2017 04:49 PM PST When I worked in restaurants, I used to see plenty of silly things like workers trying to steal, so I wonder if this industry has corrupt practices as well. As I transition in, I want to be prepared for anything. [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 03 Dec 2017 05:07 PM PST I want to find a new job, but I am unsure in regards to how to go about it. I hear people say that chances of getting a job through career builder/monster is very low , but chances of getting a job through networking is very high. But what does this even mean? Does this mean that I go on linkedin and find managers and supervisors in my potential company in my field and start asking them out for a coffee ? Even if they agree to it, what should the conversation look like? I know at some point I have to ask them about the job. What if they just turn me down at that point? I am confused about this whole "networking" method to find a new job. Can someone please help ? I am desperate. [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 03 Dec 2017 11:53 AM PST I've lived in the Redlands area before and have had my eye on the company for a while. I like the area that they focus on (geodata). I'm wondering if I should try to get one of the support analyst jobs while I work on my education, and try to jump internally to one of the dev roles when I'm ready. Thoughts? [link] [comments]  |
| Learned quite a bit of programming on my own over the past few years, now what? Posted: 03 Dec 2017 04:49 PM PST Hi all! I started college about a year ago, and due to being an international student, I had to spend the year studying concepts which I already knew about. I spent most of that time working on several projects, which range from a procedurally generated question paper program, a dynamic database system that depends on n-dimensional arrays to return and save values, a modification of Python lists with the help of Numpy's Arrays to improve memory efficiency (Official Release Date: Somewhere at the end of December!), and a bunch of smaller boring stuff. I've been looking into machine learning and UML design too for fun and started to read Writing Clean Code (because what's left when you code and everything runs? Refactoring!). I feel like I'm at the point where I'm competent enough to get a paid internship/a job, but I have no idea where to start. I'm a university student who's allowed to work for 20 hours a week during the semester based on my visa requirements. So my question is: How do I get a job that doesn't involve me making/delivering pizzas? Am I ready for it? What should I expect and what should I do from the standpoint of a university student? I should mention that I am quite proficient in Python, Cython, C, C++, and have about 3 years of experience in Python at least, and am a first-year student in Computer Engr. Thanks! [link] [comments]  |
| How often are you asked to flatten a memoized recursive DP solution to an iterative one? Posted: 03 Dec 2017 11:34 AM PST This is my greatest worry as I begin phone screens and on-sites with the Big N (new-grad positions). I can come up with a memoized recursive DP solution just fine - it's just the iterative one that gets me. [link] [comments]  |
| What's the best way to find meaningful mentorship as a new Software Engineer. Posted: 03 Dec 2017 07:34 PM PST Hi, everyone-- some quick information about myself: I come from non-traditional background and after going through a three month boot-camp was able to successfully acquire a role within a fortune 500 company as a software engineer. Around this time last year I knew a modicum of baby java script...I now know core Java, Python, Js, HTML, CSS, a collection of relevant frameworks and libraries (Angular, React, Ionic, Vue, etc) and a bunch of other related subjects such as CI/Jenkins, Git, build management tools etc. While I do feel proud of myself for having made it this far within the year, I kind of feel completely lost in terms of where I should apply my efforts to continue growing in my career. It's time like these I wish I could ask someone more experienced and further along in their careers where I should best invest my time and how I can progress as a developer. As you might have guessed, my focus is in mobile and web development. I'd like to ask folks on this sub where and how they managed to find mentorship in their career. Feel free to share advice or anything related to the subject matter. [link] [comments]  |
| Should I take a promotion to lead for a team less aligned to my interests? Posted: 03 Dec 2017 06:45 PM PST Title says it all, I think. Currently working for a ~150 person startup in a major city. I've been here almost 3 years and love my job. It's my first job out of school and I'm 25. My role has shifted a bunch in my 3 years here (seeing as the company was ~20 people when I joined), our people and priorities have obviously realigned a bunch. For the past ~6 months I've been on our data science team, which is what I studied (was stats/CS undergrad) and I really enjoy it. Long story short, middle of last week, my manager pulled me aside and offered me a promotion to a "Team lead", which I was initially very excited about. That said, once I got more details, I found out that it's a team that I'm less excited about - it still touches some of the data science work I've been doing, but much less so than my current role. I guess my question is, how do I decide whether or not to take this role? What factors might I not be considering or not focusing on enough? Some more potentially relevant details:
Thanks for the advice! [link] [comments]  |
| Is being a community college student the reason why my response rate for CS internships is low? Posted: 03 Dec 2017 02:44 PM PST So I am a student in a community college, I am planning to transfer next fall to a 4 year University and major in CS. I have 1.5 year experience as a Dev. I worked on multiple technologies such as php, vb.net, jQuery, SQL, MySQL, etc. I have been applying to many companies in my area for internships and I don't get any responses or just rejections. Is being a cc student a factor? [link] [comments]  |
| Can only work remotely -- which field? Posted: 03 Dec 2017 04:15 PM PST I have to find a remote job due to a medical condition that I've recently developed. I have enough money to study intensely for the next year, even 2 if I have to push it. Currently have no degree or programming experience but I'm willing to pursue a degree if it's online only. Am I correct in assuming that becoming a full stack web developer gives me the best shot at working remotely? [link] [comments]  |
| To all my fellow devs, how did you pivot your career? Posted: 03 Dec 2017 06:16 PM PST Did you pivot into your current field in software dev from another field, or did you change your career in software dev into something else? What's your story? How/why did you do it? A lot of the posts here are about "how to get the job" and not about what potential roads lie ahead. Just wanted to hear about some alternative paths and stories. [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 03 Dec 2017 06:14 PM PST Listen, I know it sounds naive and somewhat out of touch for most fields, but my only concern is being unemployed(as in crisis resistant) or having to crunch for 100 hours a week; not making 100k a year. I'm doing decently enough in college for someone who has never coded before, BUT I'm in IT for a career, not because I've always loved it and am highly passionate about it... This is a reality for a majority of young adults nowadays and I'm not sugar coating anything, I still work my ass of to be one hell of a professional, but that's how I see it, a profession. Given that, what fields are in demand right now that would fit the bill proposed?? I've been very motivated and interested with messing around(and fighting for) with internet access, privacy and security(given the FCC thing...It's so important to prepare for a probable war on accessibility and privacy) But I have no idea what "area" that fits into..And I couldn't talk to any professor about it. [link] [comments]  |
| What are some job benefits specific to the industry you work in? Posted: 03 Dec 2017 11:11 AM PST For example, my friend's aunt and uncle work for a cruise company as developers, so they are able to get cruises at-cost and go quite frequently. What are some of the special benefits that are available to you because of your industry? [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 03 Dec 2017 07:43 AM PST I need some serious help on deciding which course to take between the three. Can anyone of you tell me how similar and different they are? [link] [comments]  |
| Data Science & Data Engineering CV Posted: 03 Dec 2017 04:27 PM PST People with these roles, how did your CV look like? How is it different to software engineering ones? I am interested in such a job position but since it's a new and very broad topic (especially in the skills required in job ads), I don't know what to focus on; especially as side projects, or frameworks to know. I know Java and Python, with the former having some work experience (including things like Gradle/Maven, Guice, Guava, Jackson, JUnit, streams). With the latter, have used in uni projects pipenv (virtualenv, requirements) and libraries like pandas, scikit, matplotlib. All through configured intellij. I know Hadoop and Spark decently well, things like spark-submit through yarn or how to broadcast and repartition (and what happens in the background). I have a good overview on ML and feature creation/extraction, as in what algorithms are there and some pros/cons, and how to test things. I cannot, however, explain in detail the algorithms behind. Now what should I highlight in my CV? Is there something missing? Maybe some frontend visualization work (which I dislike)? I don't really have projects to show, any recommendations? Edit: I'm a CS Masters student in the Netherlands. [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 03 Dec 2017 04:24 PM PST 90% of the job post I see so far are looking for 'Lead' in this and that everywhere. Why does no one want to hire for entry positions? [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 03 Dec 2017 07:52 PM PST Hey guys, I'm a computer science student at a state university in New York and I've hit a wall with my studies. I passed my first computer science class and did relatively well but now that I'm getting in to more advanced stuff I'm really struggling. I've taken this class before and failed and this semester it looks to be the same result. I fell behind in the material and even with help of tutors and TA's I still struggle with the more advanced curriculum. I've been thinking long and hard about if this is what I want to do for my career and I realized it's not what I want to do but I'm 23 and I need to start making progress in my life. I've thought about changing to Information Science which isn't completely centered on coding but I'm hesitant to make the jump. I enjoy coding itself when I understand what I need to do but I frequently run into problems and sit for hours trying to tinker with the code and figure out what the issue is. I'm putting in the time but it's not productive time when it's like I'm banging my head into a wall for hours and gain no progress. If I keep trying with no success I will have wasted a ton of money on nothing tangible and I really don't want to let my parents down. I feel this decision is going to define the following years of my life and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't scared of making the wrong choice. Any help at all would be greatly appreciated. Thanks [link] [comments]  |
| [Therapeutic Rant] Feeling lost after 2+ years in the workforce Posted: 03 Dec 2017 07:37 PM PST I'm going to be mostly vague because my coworkers could be reading this. I'm mostly doing this as a form of therapy. The last few months have been extremely unmotivating. I hate Mondays. So here's my story: Right after graduating, I started my career with a well known startup in San Francisco. That job payed relatively well but I hated my boss and the work was like 2% actual software development, 98% BS. I stayed for almost a year (because I suck at technical interviews and who's going to hire an idiot like me). After some time and prayers and luck, I got a job at another startup also in SF (the one I'm at now) and I actually got to do some development. It was great. Well, it was for the first few months. Then the projects got repetitive (it was mostly doing the same type of code but with slight variations). I can't remember the last time I learned something new or worked on a large core project. What's worse is now, most of the time, I'm doing to tiny bug fixes. Other days, I'm just sitting there wondering what I should be working on. I'll message my boss to see if he has anything but I'll either get radio silence or a "check with person X". On a good day, I'll have made at least one commit (one a GOOD day). Because of that I also have this feeling of anxiety that if someone looks close enough and realizes that I'm barely doing any work (because I'm barely assigned anything) that I'll be let go. After all, I'm contributing very little and contributing to the burn rate of the company. I'm sure for some people this is all very normal (i.e. sitting around and doing nothing for days on end) but I'm very purpose-driven. I just can't do that or else I start going mad. I think the other thing is I'm a junior developer and I've definitely screwed up a bunch of times. However, I've fixed it and rarely ever caused any major production issues. This probably gives me less credibility and makes my boss trust me less with any new projects. At the same time, I feel like it's the boss's responsibility to be transparent about this (if it is indeed the case) or at least set some objectives or standards for me to improve on. I don't even feel justified in asking for a raise because of all this. Anyways, I'm now interviewing (again) but I have this feeling that I'm chasing something that doesn't exist. I'm close to an offer with one seed-stage profitable company (it's less than 10 people and like 2 developers) but I'm having trouble justifying the move. Yes my salary will definitely be better but I feel like I'll be dissatisfied still. I interviewed at a bunch of other bigger startups but ultimately failed at the technical stage (I just can't do them..I've tried stupid LC and Cracking The Horse Shit Interview). I also day dream of just moving back east, finding a boring 9-5 job and just settling down. Maybe this bay area hype is just messing with my head and my expectations... Ahhhhahsdashdasdhaksaksdhaskjdhakshdaks.....I'm not depressed necessarily or even burnt out....just frustrated and lost and unmotivated. Anyone else feel like this? What do I need to do to get clarity? [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 03 Dec 2017 01:21 PM PST Hello, throwaway account for obvious reasons. I'll be laid off in 3 months. I'm a journalist and love it, but an upcoming "restructure" will remove my department entirely. I'm freaked out, wife who works part time is freaked out but we decided to do something about it. I figured out it's time to say goodbye to journalism because it doesn't look bright, at least in my area. Savings can buy me additional 4 months, is it possible to learn a skill that enables me to satisfy a hiring need at a company? Securing a $60k - $70k is what I'm aiming for. I'm really sorry: I know my question is irritating and stupid given my limited knowledge. Thank you. [link] [comments]  |
| What's the point of tech recruiters from recruiting agencies? Posted: 03 Dec 2017 10:13 AM PST I guess this question apply to not just tech recruiters, but in almost all other industries as well. Basically I was talking to a friend who worked as a tech recruiter at a relatively big recruitment agency called Randstad. He told me the majority of his salary is made from taking a percentage of each of his clients' salary. For example, if a SDE working with him asked for $50/hr, and he was able to find the SDE a job that offers $70/hr, he would be able to split the $20/hr with his company as long as the SDE still works there. Can someone with more industry experiences confirm this? If this is true, I don't see why most people wouldn't just apply for jobs themselves? [link] [comments]  |
| What books would you recommend to give a graduating CS student? Posted: 03 Dec 2017 06:27 PM PST I've got a few friends that are graduating in December and May, and I'd like to get them a parting gift that'll be useful for them. It doesn't have to be specifically about CS of course, maybe just something you would recommend to a graduating student in general that you found useful. [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 03 Dec 2017 06:26 PM PST Has anyone interned / gone through the interview process for Lyft? Any advice would be greatly appreciated – have a final round coming up! [link] [comments]  |
| Posted: 03 Dec 2017 06:19 PM PST What is Palantir's new grad offer like? Also, will they match competing offers? Thanks! [link] [comments]  |
| When will I be ready to start applying to the big companies? Posted: 03 Dec 2017 06:11 PM PST Going to just post a brief overview of my resume. I don't feel quite ready to start applying to Facebook, Google, NASA, or any other big tech company, but just trying to gauge when may be best:
Ideally I want to take the entrepreneur route, however I fully understand the risks involved and am still working on a career as a back-up (plus, gotta pay the bills somehow). IT are the easiest job I could get in the tech industry in my area, hopefully the new position will be my last under an IT title. If I don't get asked to stay with their IT department after May, I will take a position with a somewhat shoddy software development firm in town to begin to have that title on my resume, and will prep hard the following semester to interview for summer 2019. Should I be looking sooner than summer 2019? Should I wait till a bit after? Am I not spending my time wisely with IT work? I know I'm overloading myself, but that is honestly just the way I am. At this point I'm going to wear the work out before it does me in. [link] [comments]  |
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