[nfbcs] Research

Mon Feb 27 15:08:36 UTC 2017

By definition, an "entry level" job is one that does not require 
experience. That's what "entry level" means.

For most people, I don't think it is really practical to suggest that 
they get experience by volunteering for an open-source project. You 
can't just walk into an open-source project and start coding away like 
crazy.  The project manager is going to say something like, "We could 
really use someone to write a USB driver. How much kernel module 
experience do you have?" Or something like that. It's true, though, that 
if you are the type of person who can jump into an open-source project 
and teach yourself somethinglike how to write a kernel driver module, 
then you probably don't need a CS degree.

The main value of things like volunteering for an open-source project or 
building a web site for your church would be that it shows initiative. 
You didn't just sit around waiting for someone to offer you a job. This 
is really probably the elephant in the room. The truth is that if you 
are smart enough and determined enough, you can overcome any 
disadvantage. If you're not, you can fail in spite of every advantage.

On 26/02/17 12:08, Andy B. via nfbcs wrote:
>> If you can get experience through opensource projects. Most hiring
>> managers
>> around here require boat loads of experience. Who wants an entry level
>> (jr.
>> developer job) when it requires a B.S. in CS and 5+ years of
>> experience? Iam
>> sure contributing to opensource and building personal projects doesn't
>> pay
>> the bills for 5 or more years. Most graduates have at least a $40K
>> bill from
>> school to pay back as well. We know the trend is for hiring
>> organizations to
>> keep the jobs just out of reach of recent graduates. What are we going
>> to do
>> about it? Most people start their own business, become freelance
>> developers,
>> or create a startup. Never forget that working for someone else is not
>> your
>> only option.
>>
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: nfbcs [mailto:nfbcs-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Christopher
>> Chaltain via nfbcs
>> Sent: Sunday, February 26, 2017 11:54 AM
>> To: NFB in Computer Science Mailing List <nfbcs at nfbnet.org>
>> Cc: Christopher Chaltain <chaltain at gmail.com>; David Andrews
>> <dandrews at visi.com>
>> Subject: Re: [nfbcs] Research
>>
>> It is true that a CS degree will not guarantee you a job, and it's
>> also true
>> that not everyone working in the technology field has a CS degree.
>> I've been a hiring manager in the technology field for over 15 years, and
>> I've worked for three different companies during that time. Most of the
>> positions I've helped staff have required a CS, CE or I degree or
>> equivalent
>> experience. Obviously, if you're a recent college graduate, it's going
>> to be
>> hard to have that equivalent experience if you don't have a technical
>> degree.
>>
>> My advice to anyone going into the technology field would be to pursue
>> the
>> appropriate degree. If you want to go into software engineering then I'd
>> recommend a CS or a CE degree. If you want to go into some other area
>> of IT
>> then an associates degree or a relevant certificate may be appropriate.
>>
>> Whether you have a technical degree or not, internship experience is
>> key. As
>> I think someone else pointed out, nothing prepares you for the real world
>> better than experience. Volunteering or contributing to an open source
>> project will also help you stand out by showing your commitment and
>> demonstrating your experience. All college graduates, especially from the
>> same university, look the same. Internships and other experience can help
>> you stand out.
>>
>> On 25/02/17 14:19, David Andrews via nfbcs wrote:
>>> Greg, I have no doubt that what you say is true. On the other hand,
>>> most people who hire entry-level people are going to consider
>>> blindness a strike against a person. Not having a CS degree is
>>> another, and this isn't baseball -- two strikes and you are out.
>>>
>>> We always need that little extra edge to end up in the same place.
>>> You can talk about overcoming countless accessibility obstacles to get
>>> your degree. This is a plus.
>>>
>>> Dave
>>>
>>> At 01:49 PM 2/24/2017, you wrote:
>>>> This is going to sound odd but I work for a major technology company.
>>>> I can not think of a single person in my group with a CS degree. More
>>>> common in fact are fine arts degrees, like mine, history and
>>>> humanities and music. We have some people including a supervisor who
>>>> have no college degree at all, he came out of the military. We are
>>>> all doing very technical work much of which involves coding which we
>>>> all seemed to have learned as we needed it.
>>>>
>>>> So is having a CS degree a guarantee of a good job at a technology
>>>> firm? Silicon Valley is filled up with CS graduates working at
>>>> Starbucks so the answer is clearly no. IS not have such a degree
>>>> going to keep you form a career at such a firm, well my experience
>>>> the answer no as well.
>>>
>>>
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>>
>> --
>> Christopher (CJ)
>> chaltain at Gmail
>>
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