11–20 of 36 posts
It would be funny to be anonymous on a freelancing site like Upwork, and pick some nickname that hints that he's part of some discriminated group, like RebeccaHarris or RainMan. Then in interviews, just hint that he didn't want to get discriminated for his 40 years of experience.
He should try to learn at least one mainstream full-scale programming language (Python would probably be the best bet). My guess is that he would be better off doing data or workflow oriented stuff than webby stuff (given how insane and trendy and for want of a better term, "skinny-pants" frontend technology has become these days. In any case ever churning and always chasing the latest shiny).
He should also try to "ping" as many modern tools as he can (docker, npm, CI/CD, etc) even if they aren't part of his preferred toolchain. And be sure he knows how to put together a simple hand-coded website + REST API together from scratch, or something close to it. ust to show he's flexible and unafraid and to destroy the idea that he's trapped in some kind of 1982 mindset.
There are a lot of places (particularly in government, social services, etc) that just need someone to do their CRUD stuff and not complain that they aren't pulling down a FAANG salary or a getting fancy title to brag about or the enjoying the luxury of being able to use latest shiny every day.
He just need to keep looking, and be persistent.
From what you said about his current skill set: He should try to learn at least one mainstream full-scale programming language (Python would probably be the best bet). My guess is that he would be better off doing data or workflow oriented stuff than webby stuff (given how insane and trendy and for want of a better term, "skinny-pants" frontend technology has become these days. In any case ever churning and always ch…
He needs to create a github site with samples of his work while he finds a job. I think the days when you could just say that you can program in a certain language are long gone so a sample site should be his goal right now. Second, he needs to focus on contract work. Look at Upwork and such to see what employers are looking for and focus on that. I've had to deal with finding reliable contract programmers and it's h…
IME no company you will ever interview at will care about this.
Work for banks. Seriously, they have a lot of legacy systems and they expect their staff to be 50+ because they know that nobody young is interested in learning ML4.
He basically is part of a minority group and being discriminated against. Search for companies that already hire from minority groups and are vocal about that. I think it would improve his chances.
He needs to create a github site with samples of his work while he finds a job. I think the days when you could just say that you can program in a certain language are long gone so a sample site should be his goal right now. Second, he needs to focus on contract work. Look at Upwork and such to see what employers are looking for and focus on that. I've had to deal with finding reliable contract programmers and it's h…
+1... I coach a lot of new engineers during their job search and good portfolios make a huge difference. You get more interviews, people trust you more, and recruiters are more likely to reach out. If you need help, check this out: https://phaseai.com/resources/portfolio-checklist or email us!