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I Can’t Find a Job as a Software Developer
Frustration. That’s what you feel after waiting for months for a call from any of the hundreds of job applications you have sent.
Am I just not cut out to be a programmer? Did I put my phone number wrong?
The hopelessness that the call you’re waiting for will never come is the next step in this cycle of negativity. If you haven’t had a previous job as a developer, you might think it’s simply impossible to get one and that your friends have been lucky. Or if you’re looking for a change of company, you might think you’re no longer an attractive professional for recruiters, that the market is no longer what it used to be, or any other narrative that justifies why you can’t find a job.
I’m Carlos Sala, a software developer, and this time we’re going to put ourselves in the shoes of the human resources staff of the companies that choose which programmers live and which fall along the selection process; to understand where we’re failing and, ultimately, to get a job as a software developer.
Deactivate the Timer
Do you remember those levels in video games that you have to beat before time runs out? For me they have always been the most unpleasant to play because you were more aware of the timer than what really matters to complete the level.
Well, searching for a job is something similar, but in the real world. If we do it in a hurry, we will make worse decisions out of desperation. The timer in the real world is almost always money, because it is something that we absolutely need to live and that we get by working. So, as far as possible, we are going to try not to add that extra difficulty to what the job search already has.
Don’t Take Unnecessary Risks
I’m aware that each person has a different situation. But basically, if you are looking for your first job as a programmer or you want to hop to another company because you are burned out; Since you don’t know how long it will take to get it, make sure you keep your old job while you search a new one so you don’t run out of money.
I give you this advice from my experience, because in the past I have been so stupid that I have left jobs as a programmer that I had without having found the next one and there were some dark weeks or months.
Keep in mind that you have to survive during the job search and, once you find it, you also have to wait until the month ends in your new position to receive your first salary.
So if you don’t want to have to ask your parents for money or accept any rubbish job they offer you because you’re broke, don’t take unnecessary risks.
The Resume: Your Presentation as a Programmer
The resume is the first impression we give to the selection technicians of a candidate. It is the only information they have about us, with which they have to decide if we move to the next step of the process, which are the interviews.
Although we can apply many tips on how to improve a resume for any other job to ours as a programmer, such as if we have to add a photograph or the age in the document, there are a series of peculiarities in IT resumes that are where we are going to focus.
Education and Qualifications
Let’s delve into the education section. Undoubtedly, within the IT sector, the specific titles, degrees, or master’s you accumulate doesn’t matter at all. A short mention of our most relevant titles for the applied position is enough.
Initially, our degrees serve as our credentials, particularly when venturing into the job market for the first time. However, as we accrue experience and evolve in our profession, the significance of our education, that is our start point, becomes irrelevant.
Work Experience
However, the list of your work experiences with dates, company name, location, role you held and responsibilities you had, should be the core of your resume. And it should appear, from top to bottom, before the education section.
Of course, you should only include the work experiences most related to the position you are applying for. In this case, we want to be programmers, so all the previous jobs you have had in supermarkets, hospitality or any other place, you should filter them. There are even experiences as a programmer that it would be good to ignore if you were in a company for a short time, you have experience in larger companies or you are, for example, changing from frontend to backend.
Finally, add a brief language section in which English and the rest of the languages that you are able to speak fluently must necessarily be included.
There is no perfect resume, so don’t be afraid to create different variations to see which one works best for you. Statistics say that even the brightest resumes only get interviews in 15 out of every 100 applications, so don’t be disappointed every time you don’t get an interview.
The Personal Interview
If your resume turns out to be one of those chosen to advance in the process, the human resources person will contact you via email or phone to schedule the first interview.
This first interview with the human resources department is basically a set of questions that they already have prepared. Some of the questions they may ask you in this phase are:
- What languages do you control?
- Make a summary of your work career so far.
- Why do you want to get this job?
- Tell us something more about yourself.
To answer these and many other trick questions, choose your words carefully because if there is something that does not convince the interviewer, you will be eliminated from the process.
On the Internet, you will find millimeter formulas to optimally answer these questions, but my recommendation is that you try to be honest, because it is the easiest way to connect with the recruiter and because I get nervous when I lie.
Salary Expectations
Probably the most decisive question of your first interview is: what are your salary expectations?
The position you’re applying for has a predefined salary range that the company is willing to offer to candidates. This means that if your salary expectations exceed what they’re willing to pay, they’ll simply continue searching among other candidates.
Depending on the interviewer’s transparency, if you surpass the vacancy’s salary range, they may inform you immediately and disclose the maximum salary reserved for the position.
If all your answers align with the HR representative, congratulations! You’ll soon receive an email with the technical interview appointment.
The Technical Interview
The technical interview is our chance to showcase everything we know about programming languages, design patterns, and best practices to the interviewer. This could be the company’s CTO, the tech lead, or a senior programmer.
The interviewer will give us a brief overview of the programmer’s day-to-day tasks at the company and then ask a series of questions about programming and common scenarios encountered in the company. We’ll need to explain our answers to demonstrate that we understand the problem and the solution we’ve proposed. It’s important here that if we don’t know the answer to a question, we say so rather than making something up. It’s understandable that we don’t know everything.
The infamous technical test may be conducted live during the technical interview or we may be given a few days to complete it on our own. And this could happen before or after the technical interview. That depends on the hiring process of the company.
You Don’t Fit What the Company Wants
Reaching this point in the selection process is initially a blow to the ego. Because it means that after evaluating your technical skills, it has been determined that you’re not the ideal candidate for the position. This is especially true when we apply for a position that is beyond our capabilities and we realize that we don’t have sufficient knowledge.
But don’t let it affect you, because often the person judging you has little more or the same amount of experience as you and has a subjective opinion. Perhaps you made mistakes in the interview that you can learn from or simply the person didn’t like you for any other reason.
If you’re confident in your technical skills and you’ve reached this point, I find it helpful to think that it’s the company that’s missing out on a great worker.
The Selection: Company’s Interests
Even if the outcome of your technical test and interview has been satisfactory, you’ll still be awaiting a final email confirming whether you’ve been selected for the position or not.
At this stage, all we can do is wait and hope that everything we’ve done previously during the process has paid off. However, we also have to consider that, among all the candidates who have reached this stage, the company has to choose the one who comes closest to what they are seeking.
With very similar technical profiles, the final decision rests on many other aspects of the candidates. It’s possible that the team is composed entirely of men and for the company, it’s a priority to hire a female developer. Or perhaps one of the candidates is willing to work for a lower salary and is perceived as a bargain: any money they can save on salaries will be a factor to consider.
If the company has doubts, it’s also quite common for a final personal interview to be arranged with the CEO of the company or the highest position in the technology department, and it’s them who will have the final say. Again, try to be yourself and make it clear that you want to be part of the team and that you can bring benefits to the company with your skills.
Be Resilient: When You Fall, You Rise
If you’re reading this, it’s because unfortunately you’ve been rejected in one of the filters of the previous selection process.
It would be great if there were a magic formula to get a job, but the truth is that all we can do is present the best version of ourselves to companies and ask for feedback when we’re rejected, so we can improve our resume, interview attitude, or technical knowledge.
Rejection is never pleasant, but as you can see, there are countless reasons why they might not consider you, so don’t dwell on it more than necessary. Take a few days, then try again with other companies that are surely eager to find a professional like you.
I’m Carlos Sala, a software developer, and see you soon!
