So, like, I can be in the same room with the mentors? WOW!
Announcing HackStars
11–20 of 112 posts
Re: Announcing HackStars
#12Even if this program deserves a critical assessment, that doesn't belong in a sarcastic headline.
Re: Announcing HackStars
#13Fuck That! - EDIT
I think that they should at least mention what the benefits of such an arrangement would be. Just hanging out with cool people doing work for free people isn’t really that beneficial.
Everyone also knows, once a developer starts working on something like this it will be more than 15 hours of work; they will work all night and day to get things done. It should be more formal and give the developers something in return. The companies will be looking to sign up "real advisers" during this time but they will get something in return. Also this will need to be very carefully orchestrated because if people are working on things that are patentable; the volunteers will need to be listed on the patents.
Re: Announcing HackStars
#14I can't help to wonder if adding more people that are "Learning" won't just get in the way of the founders actually getting work done.
Re: Announcing HackStars
#15wouldn't you agree internships are a good opportunity for students? Seems like a similar thing but specifically orientated around startups. They should get (a slither) of equity, maybe..
I started clocking real money, admining unix systems, when I was pimple-faced and fresh out of high school. The trick is to run your own 5k shell-account service and drop a heavy resume on someone's desk :-)
You can always do your own things and "get experience", fuck these pricks man. That shows more initiative to real entrepreneurs who want to hire you later. IMO, internship just tells me you did your time being someone's in-house rookie.
Re: Announcing HackStars
#16I agree working for free would be foolish. But, once you meet your prospective team just ask them how much equity you'll be able to get. If it doesn't meet your standards I think you could just say no thanks. Seems like a reasonable way to join an interesting startup (if there are any interesting ones in their summer class). If you have actual skills they need, you do have a good bargaining position.
Re: Announcing HackStars
#17wouldn't you agree internships are a good opportunity for students? Seems like a similar thing but specifically orientated around startups. They should get (a slither) of equity, maybe..
To me, an unpaid internship can make sense if you're making coffee and hoping to absorb some experience/wisdom from the bankers/lawyers/whoever you're working for. But if you're someone with actual skills (e.g. " a UI/UX guru and/or a strong coder with PHP, Java, Flex, .NET, Ruby/Rails, or Javascript skills"), making an actual contribution, you should be paid.
"should" is a word that doesn't belong in this discussion. The "hackstars" don't have to take this opportunity. They can choose to find a paying job.
Re: Announcing HackStars
#18Here's my initial impression: 15 hours a week? Is that even going to get anything done?
Re: Announcing HackStars
#19In general, any sort of unpaid internship biases against people who aren't well enough off to work for free (i.e. whose parents won't support them while they do). It's really a kind of class discrimination that prevents people from lower socioeconomic standing from having much of a chance at certain jobs (like in the finance world) that tend to rely heavily on unpaid internships.
One thing I've always liked about my profession is that we tend not to do that in the software industry, which I think makes it more egalitarian and at least helps open up opportunities to people who actually do need to get paid for the summer. It's disappointing to see a reversal in that trend.
Re: Announcing HackStars
#20Unpaid internships are becoming EXTREMELY common (if not in the CS field, certainly elsewhere). In NYC this used to be only the case for fashion, but has now spread to basically every other industry. We had a discussion the other day at lunch whether this was legal/ethical. I'm still not sure how I feel about it...
I'm in an unpaid internship right now and I love it. The employer actually hires most of their talent through the unpaid internship program. They get to see if the people who do the internship are really there because they want to learn and contribute regardless of monetary compensation.
I know everyone can't do this because at some point you need compensation, but the arrangement has taught me a great deal about how to program scalable applications that I will definitely use in the future.