Here are five things that the experience of looking for a job after coming out of the program taught me
We don’t talk much about what happens to a person who goes through programming training after graduation, when he or she is looking for a job.
I completed Hack Reactor (a programming training website with offline and wired courses) in July 2016, and it took me three months to get the Offer from R Company. I sent out resumes to 291 companies, received 32 phone interviews, 16 technical interviews, 13 code interviews, 11 in-person interviews, and received eight offers. Salaries range from $60K to $125K (annual salary), and the company is located in every state in the US, with both front-end and full-stack positions. Overall, I shot 2.8 percent.
If I had known these five tips before I started my job search, IT would have been easier.
Tip 1: Meet real people
At first I used a “cast a wide net” approach to job hunting. I submit my resume to sites like Indeed, AngelList, LinkedIn, StackOverflow, and Hacker News. I even submitted my resume to Craigslist.
I apply for any position that involves React, Node or JS. So for the first week, I sent out 15 to 20 resumes a day.
Predictably, less than 5% responded. My resume went nowhere.
Until one day, my roommate, who used to be a recruiter, shared a little trick with me. He told me to send my resume directly to the email address of the employee at the company, whoever that person was, as long as that person read the email.
Since then, no matter which company I’ve invested in, I’ve looked up the developer or HR on LinkedIn and sent my resume directly to that person.
For most small businesses, the email format is “full name @ companyname.com”. For large companies, it may be “name.name @ companyname.com”. I also used Rapportive to ensure that my email address is accurate.
I sent over 150 emails and received over 30 replies.
And the advice they gave me was very helpful. I’ve found that some ceos or Ctos respond directly to me, or even interview me directly.
Advice two: from small to big, easy before difficult
You may be asked for a paragraph 1 interview (for example, if a non-technical company needs one person to maintain the homepage) and ask for JS basics.
You may also be asked about algorithms and data structures in section 9 interviews (such as alibaba and Tencent level interviews).
I tactfully put the lower part of the interview to the front and the more difficult one to the back.
In this way, LITTLE by little, I gained interview experience, built up my confidence, and got several guaranteed offers.
As I gained interview experience, I slowly “upgraded”. I’m starting to be able to handle high-level interviews. Below are the statistics of the offers I got.
I was able to answer harder questions, I was paid more, and eventually, I got the job I wanted.
Tip # 3: Learn the basics because you’ll need them at work
You need to keep studying and preparing for interviews.
Why is that? Because if you can’t answer the interviewer’s questions properly, you’re not going to get the job.
If the interviewer doesn’t think you’re ready, he won’t hire you.
After learning from the Hacker Reactor, I knew that my weaknesses were data structures and algorithms. I have heard a statistic that people who graduate from training courses have a worse foundation in data structures and algorithms than those who graduate from training courses.
So, I insist on studying and practicing my weak points every day.
I spent several days continuously learning “sorting algorithms”. I also spent a few days focusing on understanding computer networks.
If I don’t understand a concept, I spend the whole day watching video tutorials and searching StackOverflow for the answer until I figure it out.
Tip 4: Put your best foot forward
Getting into the Internet business is not easy. Whether you’re ready or not, you have to perform well. To win, you have to put your best foot forward.
Sell yourself
At Hack Reactor, we were told not to volunteer for inexperience. When introducing ourselves, we don’t mention our online learning experiences.
Why is that? If we don’t, the interviewer will immediately assume that we are junior developers and label us as “inexperienced”.
I once had an interview with a startup and the interviewer walked out of the interview knowing THAT I came from an online training program. Another company offered me $60K because of my training experience, which is less than the average junior developer.
Remember, you need to convince the interviewer that you can do the job.
At the same time, you have to convince yourself that you can do the job.
You can talk about your love of programming, the projects you worked on with React and Node, and your deep understanding of JS.
Once the interviewer knows this, it doesn’t matter if you came out of a training program.
Only in this way will the interviewer hire you.
Two-way choice
The interview is a process in which the candidate and the interviewer get to know each other.
All you have to do is convince the interviewer to hire you, and all the interviewer has to do is get the right people.
Think of the interview as the process by which you evaluate your chances. There is no shame in using interviews as stepping stones.
Even if I’m not interested in a company, I’ll go for an interview.
I would interview anywhere in the country if the company invited me. I asked the interviewer questions, and I learned a lot about the structure of the technical team, what technologies they used, what tools they used, what challenges they encountered, and their systems architecture.
It is recommended that you ask the interviewer some questions during the interview:
- What technical challenges have you faced recently?
- What have you enjoyed most about this company?
- How is your team structured and how is work divided?
I see every interview as a learning opportunity. Each interview helps me improve my presentation skills, interviewing skills and technical skills. Every time I fail in an interview, I find my weakness.
Tip 5: This is a marathon, not a 100-meter race
It’s definitely not been an easy three months for me. During these three months, I had to work hard six days a week to find a job and study. But I still take good care of myself.
Sometimes, I study with my friends. Sometimes I’ll find a cafe and study alone or go to a lounge provided by Hack Reactor. I also report my progress to the coach every week.
It’s easy to run out of enthusiasm in the process. So eat well, sleep well, and keep learning.
And it’s easy to get lonely. It’s better to be with a group of schoolmates.
Advice: Be mentally prepared for long-term combat and take good care of your body.
conclusion
- Contact with reality
- From small to great, easy to difficult
- Learn the basics because you’ll need them at work
- Put your best foot forward
- This is a marathon, not a 100-meter race
You may feel like landing a good job is a long way off, but you’ll make it. Keep putting in the time, keep sending out resumes, and keep taking care of yourself.
You will get what you deserve.
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