How to Get a Job as a Computer Programmer
Warsaw sees programming being pervasive, diverse, and specialized. "You might need knowledge of a particular programming language, or expertise in a particular domain, but you often also need to be a generalist willing to take on any task even if you're not an expert with the technology," recommends Warsaw. "For example, if you are doing front-end Web development, you might need strong visual design skills, experience in user testing, and a knowledge of JavaScript. If you are doing back-end systems development, you might need SQL (database) and multiprocessing experience, along with fluency in the C, C++, Python, Perl, Java, and Ruby languages."
"Two critical skills that I think are underestimated are the ability to learn and the ability to collaborate," says Warsaw. "Learning is crucial to a long career as a programmer because technology changes so quickly. The hot language you are an expert in today may end up being a programming backwater tomorrow." Warsaw, who works with people from all over the world on a daily basis, emphasizes that the ability to clearly communicate ideas and listen to the ideas of others is fundamental to building a successful career. "I think the myth of the lone programmer locked in a dark cubicle is mostly just that, a myth," he says.
Interview Questions Submitted by Real Computer Programmers
"Given a series of numbers, how would you determine if there was a duplicate one in the list?" - a2z, Inc. Computer Programmer Candidate (Location Unknown)
"Write a C function to encode a string using RLE encoding." - Oyster Travel Corp Computer Programmer Candidate (New York, NY)
"Do you have all the skills listed in the job posting?" - CDI Computer Programmer Candidate (Location Unknown)
What is the Job Like?
"Because most of my work is with free software and open source, I am constantly receiving and sending emails, usually of a highly technical nature," says Warsaw, who can always be found on social forums like online chat system IRC, Twitter, Facebook, and mailing lists. "I roughly split my time between interacting with other people all over the world in these and other forums, and in focused concentration on a specific programming or debugging task."
If you work in a traditional office environment, you may not always be able to set aside uninterrupted chunks of time. "Interruptions are the killer for such deeply mental work as programming because it can take 45 minutes to an hour to build up your context some times," says Warsaw. "A five-minute interruption can cause you to lose hours worth of work because of that. So you really need to cultivate techniques and processes for letting other people know when you cannot be interrupted."
Real Reviews From Computer Programmers
+ "The advanced technology and opportunities for programmers to grow. Employees are given allot of freedom. The company really seems to care about its employees. " - Geographic Solutions Computer Programmer (Palm Harbor, FL)
+ "Flex time, pay is very competitive, opportunities for growth and advancement present. Benefits very good." - R.L. Polk Information Technologist (Computer Programmer) (Southfield, MI)
- "As a company grows, it becomes entrenched with bureaucracy." - Intel Corporation Computer Programmer (Hillsboro, OR)
- "Office bullying is a common practice especially in the IT department." - Charles Jones Computer Programmer (Trenton, NJ)
Review information and interview questions supplied by Glassdoor.
