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Joseph Lowe
Courses Plus Student 2,170 PointsHow do I find future job prospects when all requirements are for applicants with a minim experience level?
How do I find future job prospects when all requirements are for applicants with a minim experience level? I see this everywhere now a days, job requirements asking for example: "2 years experience or 4 years experience minim". That's understandable but, where does that leave people like me? I'm not and will not be one of those desired applicants so, how do I manage to find a job then??? Even, if I obtained a Master's degree it still doesn't show in the real world as time on the job. Also, college internships aren't always easy to come by and aren't necessarily guaranteed to become full-time employment positions. In conclusion, my question is aimed predominately at an experienced web developer who works either front-end or back-end in developing.
2 Answers
Thiam Hock Ng
22,131 PointsHi Joseph, I guess the first step is that you need to start your own projects, or freelance, or even work for free for others in order to build your portfolio. This is what I am doing right now. After working for a few years, sometimes I do think experience are overrated as some people can just slack through the 2 to 3 years without getting fired, and I believe employers know that too. I believe that in this industry especially, your portfolio is especially important. If you see a job description which interest you, and you believe you qualify for the position, I would say just apply for it.
Maybe the following blog posts can help you: http://blog.teamtreehouse.com/how-to-interpret-ridiculous-web-design-job-posts http://blog.teamtreehouse.com/get-web-design-experience
Also, I am considering starting a business targeting at the problem you are facing. If you are interested, feel free to drop me a tweet at @thiamhockng or something and we can discuss more.
Jason Narog
14,611 PointsHi Joseph,
I'd second what Thiam said about freelancing. You won't be making a ton of money in the beginning, but if you do well for one client they'll start referring you to others and before you know it you have a fairly steady flow of people looking for you to build things for them. It also helps to have a "jack of all trades" type attitude. I would do development and design, but I would also help out with content writing, creating powerpoint presentations, or even basic computer troubleshooting.
You can also check around for Meetup or similar groups and start talking with the people there. A few guys I met at one of the local meetups ended up teaming up with one another and started their own development shop.