How easy is it to get a Job as a Programmer?

In todays climate there are more people looking for jobs and less and less jobs available. In such competitive times you need to try harder to stand out against the other candidates. Having been in similar situations in the past, I managed to overcome the odds and not only secure a role, but also have the luxury of being able to choose between different opportunities.

Below are some of the things you could do to give yourself the best chance possible.

Prerequisites
Before I start I think it’s worth stating that a real interest in programming is a sort of a prerequisite. As a lot of the advice is will use up fair amount of your spare time, which will be much easier to do if you have an actual interest in this stuff.

1. Best Practices
Learn about Design Patterns and development best practices. The chances are that someone out there has already solved whatever problem or technical requirement you have. Learning about best practices can help you avoid making common mistakes and improve your standard of coding in general.

A good book to learn about design patterns is Head First Design Patterns.

2. Finding Information
Learn how to use google/resources effectively. You might laugh at this one, but knowing the most efficient way of searching on google for help with a problem or for some extra information can be invaluable. Also don’t be afraid to post to developer forums / mailing lists, or even email the people in charge of a project for some help.

Two newer websites that are also useful for helping with programming problems are dzone and stackoverflow

3. Accreditation
Gain a widely recognised accreditation. For Java my personal recommendation would be The Sun Certified Java Programmer program – it would help give potential employees some reassurance with regards what your current standard of programming is.

4. Agile
Learn about Agile software development – I believe that an Agile approach is the the best way to produce software, and even if you don’t end up using it, you could incorporate some of the best practices into your new role and impress your new boss. Check out my post on Agile Best Practices for further information.

5. Join an Open Source Project
Join and contribute to an open source project – preferably something that has a fair amount of developer activity and something that you find interesting. Some suggestions would be Hibernate, The Spring Framework, Selenium.

6. Write a blog
I think this would score a lot of brownie points with potential employees. Starting a blog also has a number of other benefits, such as building relationships with other people in the industry and increasing your level of visibility.

7. Learn Learn Learn
Keep up to date with the latest development related news and learn and experiment with new technologies. See my links section for more places to find information.

8. Improve your C.V
Your C.V is effectively your sales pitch to your potential employers – spend time on making it as clear and concise as possible. Also ensure that your strengths and full range of technical skills are adequately highlighted.

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