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Work after work: Notes from an unemployed new grad watching the job market break

urlahmed.com

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Re: Work after work: Notes from an unemployed new grad watching the job market break

#191

Post by pnathan »

The number of junior roles I have seen my companies open in the past 8 years - and I've been at a few different shops - is less than he fingers I have. And this is _before_ the AI-copolypse.

Management has generally become persuaded that juniors are not worth hiring. My current shop is a bit more thoughtful on this which is good. But. The desire for senior+ is out of line. Particularly when companies want to pay junior rates. =}

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Dear author,

I don't know any period in the past 20 years where entry level jobs were properly allocated outside of FAANG. I have always advised talking to Microsoft, as my perspective is that they have the best entry level pipeline.

"The market can stay irrational longer than you can afford to stay in it" is an old stock traders proverb. And I believe it applies the AI fad. I do not believe that the dreams of actually replacing humans will work out generally. But it will be a painful experience for the employees and the prospective employees.

Re: Work after work: Notes from an unemployed new grad watching the job market break

#192

Post by nextworddev »

urlahmed wrote: post #175

Hey all, OP here (author of the blog post, someone else submitted it ). I wrote this a few days ago mostly out of frustration and honestly did not expect it to go anywhere. It is pretty surreal to wake up and see it on HN with so much discussion. Thank you for reading and for all the comments, messages, and thoughtful critiques. I am currently looking for roles that sit at the intersection of ML, product, and researc…

This is top notch blog post. Keep creating. Substack or Beehive allows for amplication since HN virality is a crapshoot.

Best of luck and reach out if you need advice.

Re: Work after work: Notes from an unemployed new grad watching the job market break

#193

Post by nradov »

brailsafe wrote: post #167
lacker wrote: post #28

What jumped out at me is that the author had three internships. Those are essentially "entry-level positions". If you do well at an internship, you typically get a job offer. If you don't do well, usually you can at least get some useful feedback. I'm not saying that everything is perfectly fine in the job market right now, it's just a lot more productive to focus on "what skill do I need to work on, that would have…

I believe they addressed this implicitly as a familiar explanation without actually needing to say it. Despite it being extremely rare to be able to pinpoint via external feedback mechanisms which areas conceivably provide tangible roi, it's just always relevant work on your weak spots. The reality of the situation (which varies a bit depending on region and discipline) is that many people and economies are indeed co…

Canada under its current leadership is probably a dead end. I'm not trying to be cruel but that's just the reality of your situation. Time to think about emigrating if you want a better future.

Re: Work after work: Notes from an unemployed new grad watching the job market break

#194

Post by rolandog »

nradov wrote: post #172
phatfish wrote: post #106

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wish Labour would impose any regulation on the tech industry, let alone "heavy". The UK is running sacred of Trump and will do nothing to stop the US tech giants avoiding tax and causing social unrest.

Why hasn't the UK been able to create any local tech giants? Would more regulations imposed by a Labour government help to turn that around?

Actually, you have it the other way around! Why hasn't the US done more to create a rich ecosystem of tech companies, instead of a couple of bloated giants that syphon our wealth and avoid taxes?

Re: Work after work: Notes from an unemployed new grad watching the job market break

#195

Post by burnt-resistor »

ineedasername wrote: post #130

> The industrial nations of the twentieth century were built around the idea that work was the organising principle of life Hopefully this is what changes. If, for example, AI reduces labor needs by 50%, we ought to gradually move to a 20 hour work week. Consumption patterns would change— the Covid years provide some very limited guidance on how such a dynamic would be shaped by changing the demand for different form…

Wishing and wanting will never achieve anything because those who own the businesses never cede anything voluntarily. They'll demand ever more productivity for less pay. There will be ever more homeless people, greater inequality, and ever more skewed power law distribution of wealth until people stop selling themselves short and start voting with their wallets, feet, and sweat.

Re: Work after work: Notes from an unemployed new grad watching the job market break

#196

Post by anovikov »

windowshopping wrote: post #62

Two initial thoughts: 1. This author's writing is extremely, uncommonly good. Good enough to write a book and have it sell. "Competing with the past of the economy," "residual behaviour of a world that treated labour as sacred," "immigration without immigrants" -- there are many elegant turns of phrase here. This is a very skilled writer. 2. His resume is designed poorly. Have a look. I'm not surprised his job search…

This. The guy should forget about the bullshit jobs he could get in the CS field and just do that same thing full time.

He could be the next Cory Doctorow. He actually writes better.

Re: Work after work: Notes from an unemployed new grad watching the job market break

#197

Post by [deleted] »

alyxya wrote: post #42

To the people at the top, the job market is a statistic. They can't feel empathy on an issue they're so disconnected from, so they just think it's not their problem, or there isn't much they can do about it. Technological innovation is supposed to mean society can produce more with less work, so in theory everyone's lives could end up better off over time where we could all work less and get more, but in practice, I…

[deleted]

Re: Work after work: Notes from an unemployed new grad watching the job market break

#198

Post by coolThingsFirst »

pnathan wrote: post #191

The number of junior roles I have seen my companies open in the past 8 years - and I've been at a few different shops - is less than he fingers I have. And this is _before_ the AI-copolypse. Management has generally become persuaded that juniors are not worth hiring. My current shop is a bit more thoughtful on this which is good. But. The desire for senior+ is out of line. Particularly when companies want to pay juni…

2015/16 was totallt doable to get a junior job nowadays companies are just barely hiring and most open positions wait for a unicorn with low rxpectations to snatch.

Re: Work after work: Notes from an unemployed new grad watching the job market break

#199

Post by nradov »

ineedasername wrote: post #130

> The industrial nations of the twentieth century were built around the idea that work was the organising principle of life Hopefully this is what changes. If, for example, AI reduces labor needs by 50%, we ought to gradually move to a 20 hour work week. Consumption patterns would change— the Covid years provide some very limited guidance on how such a dynamic would be shaped by changing the demand for different form…

There was no useful guidance from "the Covid years". What you experienced was just the federal government printing money and giving it away. At some point if we want to have a functioning economy then people have to actually go to work and make things. AI won't change this reality.

Re: Work after work: Notes from an unemployed new grad watching the job market break

#200

Post by burnt-resistor »

rsaz wrote: post #11
GianFabien wrote: post #2

When you look beyond office jobs, you see many real opportunities. For example, there is a housing crisis. Not enough trades persons, building supplies, capital to solve that problem. The unemployment statistics aren't detailed enough to show IBM, MS, Facebook, Amazon, etc laying off tens of thousands of employees a year, each. Last I read, over 500,000 staff have been laid off in the past couple of years.

I was laid off some time ago and made an earnest effort to break into the trades. I have some experience in framing and general handiwork, but it is extremely difficult to find an apprenticeship/get on a track to certification. I’ve heard unions are extremely selective to ensure their current union members can find consistent work. As with most things, getting into it seems to be primarily about knowing someone to ge…

Manual labor can be a thing until you get too hurt to continue, and then you'll need another vocation.

Do whatever is of most value you find easy but others find difficult, specialize, find a location with more demand and less competition, brand distinctly, advertise efficiently, and make sure your prices are calibrated correctly. Maybe it's installing security systems or home automation integration.

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