Simple, just lie about your age. In any case once you get a few jobs under your belt it will all be word of mouth anyway.
Ask HN: How does a 16 year old go about getting work on software?
21–30 of 46 posts
Re: Ask HN: How does a 16 year old go about getting work on software?
#22Look first for local software development shops and contact the CTO, group manager, or if available, HR about your interests. Consider looking first for services companies (e.g. web development shops, digital agencies, etc.) as they typically can use an extra set of hands. LinkedIn should be a good source of contacts. Explain your background and that you are interested in shadowing or being an intern. Even though you…
This is good advice. I got my first programming job at 16 working for a local web agency as a summer internship. I actually responded to an ad - I was lucky in that they were looking for someone like me. If they aren't, I think there is a lot of value they could get from you, and your task is to convince them of that fact :)
I also think that having a strong track record of contributing to open-source software says a lot more than the kind of job I had; I wish I had discovered and gotten really involved with a project like Python or Debian back when I was that age. Instead, I released game mods, which isn't too bad a use of your time if you find that sort of thing fun.
Re: Ask HN: How does a 16 year old go about getting work on software?
#23Also regarding Bountysource (laughably low bounties) and Upwork, for that matter Elance, odesk - all of those are races to the bottom.
Go to local tech meetups, give a presentation on something and say HEY by the way.. I'm looking for work! Someone is bound to take you under their wing.
Re: Ask HN: How does a 16 year old go about getting work on software?
#24When I was your age I was doing freelance web development. Keep working on OSS and start doing some contract work and you'll be golden.
Flash forward a bit... And the summer before my senior year in high school I interned at a startup in Honolulu. Just keep learning and working hard and good things will come of it.
Re: Ask HN: How does a 16 year old go about getting work on software?
#25Earlier quoted context omitted.
Bingo. This is exactly what I did. Build a lot of of things, it doesn't have to be unique, it doesn't have to have a business plan, it just needs to be something. Build tools to help automate simple things you do every day. Build tools just for yourself. That way in a couple years you'll already come to the field with a huge portfolio, and who knows one of your random projects might actually end up getting popular an…
When you did that, was it a website? A service? Simply having an open source project in itself brings in no cash . Can either of you (or someone else) go into detail on your experience? Links are OK! The OP (and myself) would love inspiration :)
I built simple websites for local businesses, and then moved into building an overly complicated CMS and hosting service for them. I put in like 18 hour days for almost a year (skipped a lot of classes in high school), and ended up with a pretty cool product. Unfortunately, I lost pretty much all of the code, so I don't have a lot to show for it. :(
Re: Ask HN: How does a 16 year old go about getting work on software?
#26Earlier quoted context omitted.
Bingo. This is exactly what I did. Build a lot of of things, it doesn't have to be unique, it doesn't have to have a business plan, it just needs to be something. Build tools to help automate simple things you do every day. Build tools just for yourself. That way in a couple years you'll already come to the field with a huge portfolio, and who knows one of your random projects might actually end up getting popular an…
When you did that, was it a website? A service? Simply having an open source project in itself brings in no cash . Can either of you (or someone else) go into detail on your experience? Links are OK! The OP (and myself) would love inspiration :)
Also, I contributed to Drupal for a while starting in high school. That itself doesn't bring in cash, but it established a reputation in that community, and now I work at NBC doing Drupal development. Open source contribution is a means to an end sometimes.
Re: Ask HN: How does a 16 year old go about getting work on software?
#27Apart from contributing to well known open source projects or starting your own, you could also try to write a plugin for some product that has a large community (e.g. Jenkins) and/or marketplace (Atlassian's one, though not sure if you have to be 18.)
Re: Ask HN: How does a 16 year old go about getting work on software?
#28How much are you looking to get paid? If you don't care that much, try putting an ad on craigslist or see if your high school's CS teacher has any connections. (Others in the school who might help network you are web dev teachers, computer networking teachers, and IT.) There may be a solo guy in the area who's working on his startup (probably funded from his personal savings and/or from a wife, or the startup might be a side-project while he works a 9-5 or occasional consulting) and who would find it worthwhile to pay a bright student $10-$20 per hour to do work. Or they might be a small shop with multiple people who don't realize they could use a cheap intern until the cheap intern asks them if they'd consider it. :) If you'd like a shot at more money, I'd either go the app route others are suggesting, or do your own freelancing. Ask your dentist, etc. if they need a new or updated website, that sort of thing. If you want other ideas, observe how people are operating at their jobs and try to imagine how software could make them more efficient, and if you think you could write that software talk to the person with the power to pay you.
Re: Ask HN: How does a 16 year old go about getting work on software?
#29I like to mod games I enjoy. I don't even play games, but I mod them. It's enjoyable, and gives me a lot of experience in technologies and setups that I'd never have seen without modding.
Also, the joy people get from your work is really high, they are very supportive, and it's an all around fun experience. The negative is you'll get used to that, and then when you work on your own, or for a company wonder why no one is as thrilled :)
Re: Ask HN: How does a 16 year old go about getting work on software?
#30Beware of foregoing formal university education just because you are getting coding gigs.
CS/math fundamentals are golden and make the difference between you being just another redundant dime-a-dozen ruby coder and a world-class engineer. Not to mention personal enjoyment of what you do down the line. Take a look at the Silicon Valley for proof.
Learning all this stuff on your own is possible, but much harder when you're "working 18 hour days". Harder yet if you eventually have financial commitments (e.g 14 cases of child support payments, har har).