Information Technology (IT)

[xxfoomandrewxx]

Anybody have any tips for answering the technical questions in software engineer interviews. I'm still in college and they seem to always trip me up. Most of the questions are about Object Oriented Programming some are asking how I would approach specific problems.

Not a huge programming guy, but been a liaison for our programmers and network engineers for a bit now. I would think you'd want to know the language that that particular job is looking for and being familiar with the concepts for that language from school or from real-time programming from independent studying. A lot of IT knowledge will come from experience and independent research, at least for my 5 years experience is what i've gotten. Sorry it's not specific help, but ya.

 

[freshtadeff03]

Sup fellas, I have a question:

How is the job outlook for jobs in the IT field? from entry level up to higher end.

I've read articles that say its growing, and of course, I mean it's technology and computers. But, if I graduate from IT, will it be hard to land a job, or will there be openings ready for me to grab? I know it's not that simple, but hopefully you get what I'm saying.

 

[xxfoomandrewxx]

Sup fellas, I have a question:

How is the job outlook for jobs in the IT field? from entry level up to higher end.

I've read articles that say its growing, and of course, I mean it's technology and computers. But, if I graduate from IT, will it be hard to land a job, or will there be openings ready for me to grab? I know it's not that simple, but hopefully you get what I'm saying.

It's true, IT is definitely a growing field that will ALWAYS need people.. And like any job, especially these days, will require some time and knowing the right people to get you where you need to be. Networking and building relationships is HUGE when it comes to "landing a job" or just getting on the right path.. You have a ton of options (networking, programming, Hardware and Software Specialists, etc.) and I would suggest setting a goal on where you want to end up to be in the long run and Specialize in that area.. Just my two cents  

 

[yeah]

I disagree. If you want an entry level IT gig (desktop support) or get your foot in the door, you will need your A+

We can agree to disagree then. Because I've landed a couple of entry level IT jobs without ANY certifications whatsoever. I still don't have a certification. but I'll probably be getting my CEH whenever my "professional" experience hits two years.

Anybody have any tips for answering the technical questions in software engineer interviews. I'm still in college and they seem to always trip me up. Most of the questions are about Object Oriented Programming some are asking how I would approach specific problems.

I can lend a little assistance to this.

First of all, they aren't asking you those questions with the expectation that you describe a perfect algorithm. What they are looking for is how well you understand the concept of Object-Oriented design in comparison to imperative design. They want to hear about how you can take two similar objects (let's say a sedan and a coupe, just for example) and create a generic class that instance of each said object can inherent from (I.e. A Vehicle or Car class, where a Sedan Object and a Coupe Object can inherit from the parent class.)

OO-programming is a different frame of mind than Imperative-programming, and you can tell just by writing a simple program of each type. Just ask a C developer and a Java developer how they would approach the same problem, and you'll probably get very different answers. OO excels when you create code that is reusable, scalable, and RECURSIVE (caps for emphasis.) Its a high-level language, so interviewers are looking for a thorough understanding of that beyond just saying "Well, C uses pointers and Java uses variables, so Java is OO."

They want you to incorporate the qualities of OO in your answer. The best way to do that varies between problems, but things like memory management, pointers/variables, class declarations, etc vary dramatically between OO and Imperative. Pay close attention to the scenarios that you're given, not only so that you understand the problem, but also so that you understand what aspects of OO can be used to help solve the problem in a way that would be better than an imperative design.

 

[freshtadeff03]

It's true, IT is definitely a growing field that will ALWAYS need people.. And like any job, especially these days, will require some time and knowing the right people to get you where you need to be. Networking and building relationships is HUGE when it comes to "landing a job" or just getting on the right path.. You have a ton of options (networking, programming, Hardware and Software Specialists, etc.) and I would suggest setting a goal on where you want to end up to be in the long run and Specialize in that area.. Just my two cents  

thanks for the info. i've been in and out of college since my freshman year in 2008. switched my major sooo many times due to me being indecisive and worrying about employment due to the economy. im going back Spring 15 to a CC. then transferring back to Kean University once I get my Associates. i'm either looking into HS Math Education or IT.

 

[xxfoomandrewxx]

thanks for the info. i've been in and out of college since my freshman year in 2008. switched my major sooo many times due to me being indecisive and worrying about employment due to the economy. im going back Spring 15 to a CC. then transferring back to Kean University once I get my Associates. i'm either looking into HS Math Education or IT.

I'm right there with you bro. Went to a university in SC after I graduated in '08, then moved back home to Cali due to finances and been doing the CC game since. I was blessed to land an IT job because my good friend was the ISO for the company and knew that I was going to school for IT. So worked my way up from there.. Certifications are on the current hit list tho, as they definitely play a role on your "Profile" per say of what you know.. But keep up the work bro! IT is def an exciting field to be in and I wouldn't trade it for anything right now.

 

[sonoftony]

I disagree. If you want an entry level IT gig (desktop support) or get your foot in the door, you will need your A+

We can agree to disagree then. Because I've landed a couple of entry level IT jobs without ANY certifications whatsoever. I still don't have a certification. but I'll probably be getting my CEH whenever my "professional" experience hits two years.

At the end of the day, experience >

You and I can agree to that

 

[Mark Antony]

I disagree. If you want an entry level IT gig (desktop support) or get your foot in the door, you will need your A+

We can agree to disagree then. Because I've landed a couple of entry level IT jobs without ANY certifications whatsoever. I still don't have a certification. but I'll probably be getting my CEH whenever my "professional" experience hits two years.

At the end of the day, experience >

You and I can agree to that

In actuality you don't "need" any certs or degrees, especially for entry level. They're good to have to show you had the discipline to follow through, but experience, and the ability to show and explain that you can perform the job well (especially for entry level) is more valuable. Hiring for a jr position most managers would understand, and like seeing potential that they can groom, mentor and be proud of watching grow to a sr position. You don't feel you're strong enough to show that, you should probably have some paper.

 

[harryho]

I don't have any certs either. Some people think I have CCIE but I don't. It's unfortunate that some companies require you to have certs to even interview you. In my opinion, cert without experience is meaningless. If I interview you and you have certs but can't give me real life examples of setup, design, troubleshooting, you're out. If you have experience without cert, I would hire you any day. Cert should complement experience.

With that said, I do put value into people with 4 year degrees. If I was split between two candidates with similar experience but one with a bachelor, I will pick the guy with the degree. There is something about grueling through 4 years of university that shapes a person.

 

[yeah]

At the end of the day, experience >

You and I can agree to that

Word is bond.

 

[Teknoman]

Anyone in school I would suggest major in a traditional engineering or science discipline. IT Field is becoming saturated. I would then get certs to fill in the blanks. 

Alot of IT stuff can be learned from reading a book. I dont think the same applies to things like Biology, Chemistry, Electrical Engineering, Physics and Environmental Science. I feel an IT degree is the new Business degree.

 

[solegit08til]

Anyone in school I would suggest major in a traditional engineering or science discipline. IT Field is becoming saturated. I would then get certs to fill in the blanks. 

Alot of IT stuff can be learned from reading a book. I dont think the same applies to things like Biology, Chemistry, Electrical Engineering, Physics and Environmental Science. I feel an IT degree is the new Business degree.

So then what's an accounting degree now?

 

[capital sb]

Anyone in school I would suggest major in a traditional engineering or science discipline. IT Field is becoming saturated. I would then get certs to fill in the blanks. 

Alot of IT stuff can be learned from reading a book. I dont think the same applies to things like Biology, Chemistry, Electrical Engineering, Physics and Environmental Science. I feel an IT degree is the new Business degree.

Lol an IT degree and CS degree are not equal at all, you go CS you cant go wrong. The demand for CS degrees outweighs the number of people graduating with it. If you are specifically speaking about Info Sys degrees I agree, because most likely you are going to land a help desk position straight out of school.

Really wouldnt make any sense to get a tradition engineering degree just to go into the IT field, just making it harder on yourself for no reason. You want to do IT go CS,
guaranteed 60K+ salary starting .If you network ,get great internships , and a 3.0+ gpa you can start between 80K-100K (salary depends on location).

 

[Teknoman]

60k starting? Lol. Hyping these youngs guys badly.

If you go to a top school or graduating top of your class then maybe. Otherwise probably not.

Most people aren't going to be able to cut it in the higher level CS classes where math skills become more important.

I would suggest anyone in school to get into co-op if its available. Definitely makes getting that first job easier.

 

[Mark Antony]

Gotta remember a lot of these guys with the lofty predictions and what majors you should take haven't even left school yet.

 

[capital sb]

60k starting? Lol. Hyping these youngs guys badly.

If you go to a top school or graduating top of your class then maybe. Otherwise probably not.

Most people aren't going to be able to cut it in the higher level CS classes where math skills become more important.

I would suggest anyone in school to get into co-op if its available. Definitely makes getting that first job easier.

Lol you have no idea what your talking about. I know multiple people that started at 100K, i know people that started at 65K with 0 experience not even an internship and low gpa's this CS salary is real. Hell I'm at 45K right now and im only an intern I know some people at 55K as interns like I said its real out here. I'm not at the top of my class have a 3.0 and go to VCU i just grind .

"computer science grads are earning $60,000, a 4.3% hike from 2012." Forbes 2013 article http://www.forbes.com/sites/susanad...degrees-with-the-highest-starting-salaries-3/

 

[wrightone86]

Myself and other grads with me, and at the company I went to, granted it was back in 2008, the going rate was 65k. Internships were base around $15/hr also.

We had a mix of internship (1-2 years) experience and a couple with no experience. Most of us were given a clearance to go with it as well. All in the DMV area, and we all went to various DoD contractors or Government Agencies. There were a couple that made more than that out of school, but they graduated with 3+ years of experience and already had their CCNA certifications as well.

I would say someone with basic certs, no clearance, and barely any experience, should be looking to get at least 40-50k for entry level tier I help desk depending on location. They would just be answering phones and forwarding them on at that point to people to do the actual work. Anything requiring them to actually work the tickets and close them out with the end-user, yes, they should be starting around 55k. Help desk at my old job made around 58-63k (2-4 years experience) and the Help desk Manager/Lead (6+ years experience) was around like 75-80k.

I finished with a 2.98 GPA...damn F from the wrong Engineering Math class that I didn't even need and I didn't want to bother retaking it holding me under that 3.0

. They tried their best to get me to retake it just to bump it up, but I didn't bother. Was from GMU with a B.S. in IT:Web Development...I had Dean's List the last 2 semesters though

My friends had 3.4+ GPAs that I finished with and they ended up with the same starting salary. I make more than most of them now as well, from the ones I still talk to anyways FWIW

 

[Teknoman]

LOL dude went to GMU, a top tier University. Government contract jobs are plentiful in the DMV area, not every where in the US. People reading these forums aren't only located in North East nor does everyone go to top tier schools.

Like I said. People will be heavily disappointed. 

 

[Rootin4EverybodyBlack]

Not to be an ***, but Mason isn't a top tier university. It's not "bad", but saying it's top tier just isn't accurate...at all.

 

[Teknoman]

Not to be an ***, but Mason isn't a top tier university. It's not "bad", but saying it's top tier just isn't accurate...at all.

You are right. But certain schools have a good reputations and companies hire consistently from those schools.

http://www.rit.edu/emcs/oce/students/salary

 

[yeah]

So then what's an accounting degree now?

Soon to be obsolete. Seriously. Automation is going to run train on a lot of accountants and tax people.

60k starting? Lol. Hyping these youngs guys badly.

Not far off. I made a little under 50k my first year out, and I didn't even try looking for a job. That was just handed to me. I'm in Minnesota, if it matters.

 

[willie mcfly22]

It seems school and gettin that 4 year paper is great, obviously. But realistically, for me anyway, that seems unobtainable I guess. Or jus might take 6+ years. I'm 31, 3 kids, kinda busy life. Jus gettin into IT for me I would think jus to get the certs n gain some kind of work experience. Am I wrong for thinking that?? I do have a 2 year degree in business admin but from Heald LOL. I'm not computer illiterate but some verbiage n some components are foreign to me...

 

[capital sb]

As long as you are willing to relocate you will not be disappointed, but you know alot of college grads would rather stay in an area that isn't good for their career and then complain that they can't find a job 

 . Don't let this clown discourage you, THE SKY IS THE LIMIT with this field word to all the experienced people I know making 150K+. 

@ GMU being a "top tier school" he must be trolling. In CS  it really doesn't matter where you went to school at you will come out making a good salary. I wonder what VCU is considered, why did my boy start out making 65K with no experience and a 2.6GPA?

 

[ikh4n]

Anyone here have an MIS degree? How was it? I'm torn on whether I should pursue a Finance or MIS degree. 

 

[solegit08til]

Soon to be obsolete. Seriously. Automation is going to run train on a lot of accountants and tax people.
Not far off. I made a little under 50k my first year out, and I didn't even try looking for a job. That was just handed to me. I'm in Minnesota, if it matters.

Mann now I gotta change majors again cause of something I read on NT.

Maybe this time I'll just go for something I'm interested in.