Woz U

Hello (Woz) World,

 

I ‘m Brent Watson, and it ‘s my job to get you one.

As an Air Force Veteran with 20 years in education, I consider myself an advocate for students. My passion is finding a path for students during their education and after graduation. As the Director of Career Services at Woz U, I work with a great group of people here who assist students with finding a tech job, whether that be in Software Development, Cyber Security, Data Science or beyond. Needless to say, we know a thing or two about how to get you a new career in technology. So here are our top 10 tips for finding a tech job in three months or less.

 

1. Have a Clean, Concise & Corresponding Resume (The three C ‘s)

Clean = No distracting fonts, colors or anything that might detract from a hiring manager looking to learn more about whether you are the right fit for the tech job for which they ‘re hiring.

Concise = Keep the length to one page.

Corresponding = The experience that you describe on the resume should be relevant for the position for which you ‘re applying.

 

2. Cater your resume to each position, based on the keywords in the job description.

Copy and paste the descriptions from the job posting into your experience, as long as it is accurate. Save your creativity for the code!

 

3. Do not pass on a tech job based on experience.

Many job postings are designed to filter out those who have neither the skills nor the desire to apply themselves. Use that to your advantage! All Woz U courses are extremely hands-on and the curriculum is updated to suit the changing demands of employers. That means everything you are learning is relevant to what you ‘ll be doing the job.

 

4. Get out of your comfort zone and go out and network. 80% of positions aren ‘t posted on job boards.

Places like Meetup.com and Facebook have great groups in your area that rally people together with similar interests. If you ‘re in the Arizona area, check out Byte Club to meet other like-minded tech-enthusiasts. Recruiters tend to hit up these groups regularly to find tech talent for the tech jobs their hiring for.

 

5. Know what you are looking for in a position/organization.

Do you prefer working for a large company with amenities and a little slower pace or do you like a small company where you can ‘wear a lot of hats ‘ and help them ramp up quickly? What kind of people do you want to be surrounded by? Career services can help you in answering these questions. Remember, if you ‘re a Woz U student, you get access to our team of career service pros for life.

 

6. Google yourself. Know and feel comfortable with your online brand/presence.

If you ‘re not seeing what you ‘d like to see, take control by updating your privacy settings on each of your social profiles. A good rule of thumb is to lock it down when you ‘re employment-hunting for a tech job. Keep your LinkedIn profile up-to-date so employers can get a preview of who you are professionally.

 

7. Have deep and relevant content on our GitHub and LinkedIn pages. Employers will view your pages.

GitHub is a like a coder ‘s portfolio site. Show off the skills you ‘re building by updating your GitHub repository as you build your skillsets. LinkedIn is a great place to read, write and share content from industry thought leaders.

 

8. Have an Elevator Speech: 30-60 seconds.

A good elevator speech or pitch answers the following questions: Who are you? What are you looking for? How can you benefit the organization? A good practice is to jot it down and practice on friends and family until it feels more natural. It will once you say it enough and it will set you apart from other people in your field, I promise.

 

9. Research the organization you are applying/interviewing with.

A quick google search and a scan of their social media feeds will give you more information about their mission, values and culture. Plus, doing a little research on who the leadership team is will help you familiarize yourself with the major players.

 

10. Practice, practice, practice your tech job / HR Interview. Practice builds confidence, confidence, confidence! And that ‘s what lands the tech job!

I love being in Career & Student Services because you never know who you are going to meet. The impact we can have, from small to large, can directly change the trajectory of a student ‘s goals and aspirations after graduation.

Got questions on the above? Want to get yourself a new tech job? Get in touch with a career advocate to learn more about our programs.