Ask HN: Been writing code for 40 years and can't get hired • Hacker News Board

Re: Ask HN: Been writing code for 40 years and can't get hired

#151

Post by octobus2021 » Mon, Dec 27, 2021, 2:35 PM UTC

adamredwoods wrote: post #74

octobus2021 wrote: post #55

My situation is somewhat different but there's similarities. Also over 50 (barely), skills are not exactly outdated (Azure data engineering/analytics), but been looking for a job since being laid off early in the pandemic (going on 1.5 years gap on the resume). Took a few months hiatus in 2020 since the job market was pretty much dead and got a few certifications. Just this month got 4 rejections, partly because of b…

Sorry to hear it's been rough. But it seems you are getting traction? My philosophy is that half the skill in finding a job, (at least in my recent experience) is luck. Keep trying.

Thank you! Yes at least getting some feedback from my applications now (and interviews) but now people seem shocked that I've been out of the job for 1+ years. I don't think people who haven't been on the job market in the last year or so fully understand how tough things are/were...

Re: Ask HN: Been writing code for 40 years and can't get hired

#152

Post by octobus2021 » Mon, Dec 27, 2021, 2:36 PM UTC

dbs wrote: post #89

octobus2021 wrote: post #55

My situation is somewhat different but there's similarities. Also over 50 (barely), skills are not exactly outdated (Azure data engineering/analytics), but been looking for a job since being laid off early in the pandemic (going on 1.5 years gap on the resume). Took a few months hiatus in 2020 since the job market was pretty much dead and got a few certifications. Just this month got 4 rejections, partly because of b…

Where are you based?

Chicago

Re: Ask HN: Been writing code for 40 years and can't get hired

#153

Post by leaded_syrinx » Mon, Dec 27, 2021, 2:51 PM UTC

This is why young people should save / invest / risk up in their late 20's and early 30's. Be in a position where you don't really have to work in your 50's or at least maintain the energy to pivot when you realize you are no longer as valuable as you thought. I've already started to feel this at 28.

Re: Ask HN: Been writing code for 40 years and can't get hired

#154

Post by kpr21 » Mon, Dec 27, 2021, 2:55 PM UTC

therealdavesky , I am sorry to hear that. I suggest, dont get demotivated. Keep trying. I am sure you would find one. Good luck.

@all, Is this a general trend for experienced devs? Lets say, someone doesn't have a gap in resume and is well versed with the current tech, system design etc and the current employer is fairly reputed. (Say top 25 in terms of market cap in the US). Will this problem still hold? My understanding is that, at 20+ yrs experience, people expect us to be in leadership roles such as director etc. But then, not everyone can get to that level.

Re: Ask HN: Been writing code for 40 years and can't get hired

#155

Post by Ken_At_EM » Mon, Dec 27, 2021, 3:32 PM UTC

We're always looking for great developers of any experience level.

https://www.erdosmiller.com/careers-jobs

Re: Ask HN: Been writing code for 40 years and can't get hired

#156

Post by airbreather » Mon, Dec 27, 2021, 3:38 PM UTC

thalis wrote: post #54

Merry Christmas. I'm Software Engineer, near 50 and I faced the same problem with you. I propose to you two paths. The first and is what I did. I moved in a field that I was not very famirial with and it concerns industrial programming and especially in CODESYS (ST programming). This is a relatively new technology but the way you design and programming is similar to those of previous decades. The second is to start y…

Industrial systems with Functional Safety is always in demand for those that can, and the OP work history probably sets him up for something like this.

Re: Ask HN: Been writing code for 40 years and can't get hired

#157

Post by [deleted] » Mon, Dec 27, 2021, 3:39 PM UTC

mwattsun wrote: post #137

martinbooth wrote: post #130

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I conduct interviews for Facebook and we do not discriminate on age. I assume the recruiter just got the impression you really didn’t want to interview with us. I only do the coding interviews but every piece of interview feedback I write is focused on the same criteria and that definitely does not consider age. We don’t even refer to the gender of an applicant in the feedback, and comments on an applicants age would…

I said "You know I'm over 60, right?" in a friendly and informative way in case that could be an issue. The correct response would have been your comment, but instead was a quick exit and putting me on the no call list. You may not age discriminate, but that doesn't mean everyone one at Meta (Facebook at the time) does not. I was aware of Mark Zuckerberg's comment which is why I brought up my age. “I want to stress t…

[deleted]

Re: Ask HN: Been writing code for 40 years and can't get hired

#158

Post by ivanhoe » Mon, Dec 27, 2021, 4:51 PM UTC

icsa wrote: post #145

ivanhoe wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> As such, good or great interview skills (i.e. algorithms, data structures, time & space complexity) are a pre-requisite to getting a job. This is so wrong. Headhunters are acting like typical bureaucrats and instead of adapting their approach to make it better at finding the actual talent (the whole point of their job), they push for developers to fit their stereotype tests better. Just like back in the school when…

> This is so wrong. Headhunters are acting like typical bureaucrats and instead of adapting their approach to make it better at finding the actual talent (the whole point of their job), they push for developers to fit their stereotype tests better. The interview requirements & assessments are driven by the hiring companies and not the headhunters. Scaling technical interviews of this kind has created $1 billion compa…

> The interview requirements & assessments are driven by the hiring companies and not the headhunters

And it's exactly what drives the bureaucracy, the transfer of responsibility. All you need to do is blindly follow the request in the most defensive possible way and no one will ever be able to accuse you of screwing it up. So you have headhunters who just follow the clients' briefs, client's HR follows their playbooks to cover their asses, and as long as they all get paid in the end of the month, who cares if you miss to hire some really talented people. It's developer's mistake, they should have prepared better for the test.

And I'm not trying to accuse anyone here of being guilty in particular, just to point that the whole process of hiring is deeply flowed by the very design. On the brighter note, it motivates a lot of really smart people to stay out of big corp world and go indie, which is actually great...

Re: Ask HN: Been writing code for 40 years and can't get hired

#159

Post by hogrider » Mon, Dec 27, 2021, 6:14 PM UTC

I would like to ask a follow up question, what tech industry jobs would HN recommend where ageism isn't a problem? I know I can only be an IC for so long before everyone will see a new grad as more economical.

Re: Ask HN: Been writing code for 40 years and can't get hired

#160

Post by wikibob » Mon, Dec 27, 2021, 7:29 PM UTC

therealdavesky wrote: post #85

cyb_ wrote: post #60

In addition to the other great suggestions: think about how you present your attitude during the interview process. IME, many hiring managers want to see passion (desire to focus on the user/mission), drive (evidence you will work hard), and humility (ability to be a team player), in addion to technical skills. Displaing corresponding negative traits can really undermine their view of you. For example, cynicism, igno…

ummm. also i have an iterview with meta tomorrow morning.

I would strongly, STRONGLY advise you to email the recruiter and say that after getting some more info about the process, you would like to please postpone the interview.

Get yourself onto http://leetcode.com Start practicing. Aim for three questions per day. Work on it for one hour, if you can’t get it, look at the solution in discuss tab and then understand it and rewrite it.

Don’t waste your time taking any FAANG tier company interviews until you can do a medium difficulty question in 20 minutes.

Once you feel ready, sign up for the 10 mock interview package on http://interviewing.io and apply for the cost deferral program (you don’t pay until you get a job).