Ask HN: Tech career-building/rehab program that I can join while I have no job?

1 points by djellybeans 3 years ago | 3 comments

As implied in the title, I'm currently unemployed and been so for about a year. But I also still need to be around other live professionals, and burying my head in books and YouTube tutorials isn't enough for me. I repeat, I do not want to continue self-learning alone. Sometimes you gotta practice interviews with people who know how to interview developers, and learn under the guidance of a cohort that can link you up with better job prospects.

Plus, I actually hope there is something similar to what Amazon is doing with tech career training, only it's training for existing developers that are finding themselves falling behind and becoming less hire-able, sort of like a pick-me-up rehab program. If such a thing doesn't exist I would be surprised given how many resources some companies have.

gregjor 3 years ago |

The good news: the basic skills needed to make a living as a programmer have barely changed since the 1970s. The landscape of languages, tools, frameworks, etc. changes frequently but a professional programmer can adapt easily enough.

The bad news: Employers don’t face a shortage of entry-level or junior people. Employers don’t have to invest in extensive training, onboarding, mentoring because they have plenty of people trying to get jobs. The so-called skills shortage almost exclusively refers to experienced senior people, which remain in short supply (and always will —- that’s the nature of experience and advanced skills).

Rather than focus on “rehab” or keeping up with fads or optimizing for tech interviews, I suggest concentrating on getting a job in software development. You’ll find smaller and less sexy employers — those dependent on software/tech but not focused on tech — don’t have such grueling interviews and don’t hold out for the top 1% of developers. That way you have some exposure to software development, gain experience and domain expertise, work with other people who may help you land jobs in the future, and get paid for your work. Look beyond the FAANG companies and startups.

djellybeans 3 years ago | |

I think your advice comes from the mistaken assumption that I haven't already looked beyond FAANG companies and startups. Thereby making some of your intentions hard to follow.

gregjor 3 years ago | | |

You didn't mention if you've been applying for jobs or not. If the advice doesn't apply then you can ignore it. You really can't expect to get specific advice from a post on HN from people who don't know you, or get offended when people who bother to reply at all have to make some assumptions to fill in the blanks. The only appropriate reply is "Thanks for taking the time."