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Ask HN: Do Udacity nanodegrees get anyone a job without academic background?

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Re: Ask HN: Do Udacity nanodegrees get anyone a job without academic background?

#21
I don't have anything specific to nanodegrees or specific online courses, but its a lot easier if you know specifically what job/industry you're targeting.

In my experience a Master's/Bachelor's/PhD might get you into the interview room because of your resume or recruiters coming to campus, but in my experience I've been disappointed about the knowledge gaps in recent graduates from well-known schools. I've also interviewed Masters/PhDs who studied my field, but were interviewing for user-facing support roles when they're clearly better suited for something more focused on r&d. Or they've focused so much on a specific subset, they're lacking the general knowledge needed for that job. IMHO, degrees don't guarantee anything for me. At most, they're a jumping off point for how your interests and background apply to that job.

More important than the degree are the projects you've worked on, your role in them, and challenges you've overcome. You could take the nanodegree and omit it from your resume, but put the projects on there as personal projects. Just don't misrepresent your work. It can be a surprisingly small industry. Someone might recognize a project as something they saw online, or know someone who worked on it.

Re: Ask HN: Do Udacity nanodegrees get anyone a job without academic background?

#22

No one is going to hire you because you have a degree, whether from a university or from Udacity. They'll hire you because: A) your overall resume is impressive B) you either have a portfolio of things you've built, or else you agree to do a take home assignment and successfully complete it C) you can pass both technical and non-technical interviews To get hired you need A && B && C. Doing Udacity will probably help…

you forgot one huge factor, you’re network and referrals.

for technical positions, it may help to get an interview but you still need to handle the technical portion of the interview

Re: Ask HN: Do Udacity nanodegrees get anyone a job without academic background?

#23

No one is going to hire you because you have a degree, whether from a university or from Udacity. They'll hire you because: A) your overall resume is impressive B) you either have a portfolio of things you've built, or else you agree to do a take home assignment and successfully complete it C) you can pass both technical and non-technical interviews To get hired you need A && B && C. Doing Udacity will probably help…

you forgot one huge factor, you’re network and referrals.

In a lot of industries, the main factor is your network, and you just need A, B, and C to be adequate to check the boxes.

If that's the case, and someone's trying to hire you because someone they trust thinks you can get the job done, the question is whether or not a nanodegree can allow your interviewer to check a box for "has training in X" that will make the difference in sliding your resume past HR's desk.

Re: Ask HN: Do Udacity nanodegrees get anyone a job without academic background?

#24

I am a product/engineering hiring manager at a tech company. I would love to know about nano-degrees that candidates have completed. It takes just as much grit as brick and mortar college if not more. Disclosure: Maybe bias as I quit college to be a FT software engineer. And traditional schooling never really worked for me I learned more at home.

So... how do you know how much grit it takes for a brick and mortar college?

Re: Ask HN: Do Udacity nanodegrees get anyone a job without academic background?

#25
post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No the OP, but: They're likely viewing them as similar to certifications. Different industries treat certifications differently. Enterprise technologies like Java and .NET and IBM products are helpful if you are aiming for that sort of job. But, if you are looking at more open-source oriented shop, they give the impression that you are focusing on trying to look accomplished. It can look like you are trying to appeal…

So what would be a better alternative to make your resume stand out to get a job that doesn't include doing a full degree?

Honestly?

Make stuff. Get patches submitted to relevant open source projects. Make a small project that's actually finished (bonus if it's demo-able).

Re: Ask HN: Do Udacity nanodegrees get anyone a job without academic background?

#26
post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So what would be a better alternative to make your resume stand out to get a job that doesn't include doing a full degree?

Honestly? Make stuff. Get patches submitted to relevant open source projects. Make a small project that's actually finished (bonus if it's demo-able).

Wait, are people applying for jobs after only doing an online nanodegree? I wouldn't employ those people either.

Re: Ask HN: Do Udacity nanodegrees get anyone a job without academic background?

#27
seeing nanodegree on CV would be neutral for me.

I'm software engineer without a degree, i've done ML nanodegree recently. I don't plan to shift my career to ML and did it only to gain high level understanding. I didn't have to put a lot of effort to complete. I wouldn't consider myself hireable for ML role but i've seen that other people treating nd courses much more seriously than myself putting a lot of effort and producing great projects.

In the end is about the skills you have and a way to present them. I think udacity courses do teach relevant stuff but it's up to you to put the effort in

Re: Ask HN: Do Udacity nanodegrees get anyone a job without academic background?

#28
post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm surprised that it sends an negative signal. Is there a reasoning for it? Does completing an online course signify unwanted behavior/personality? I feel like if you leave it off your resume, you probably wouldn't be able to land the interview to begin with.

> I feel like if you leave it off your resume, you probably wouldn't be able to land the interview to begin with. The nanodegree is step zero in teaching yourself to program and definitely isn't necessary. Demonstrating what you can do is several orders of magnitude more important, and is the real end goal. Most competent self-taught programmers understand this, and understand how trivial a nanodegree actually is as…

Yes, that's the rub: Getting past HR, which typically demands a degree (or higher). Unfortunately, there are a lot of self-starters in this industry and I feel it is the fault of HR's lack of education in this matter to be able to recognise good talent.

I like your attitude toward interviewing anyone with who has launched a product as it gives you a lot to talk about.

Re: Ask HN: Do Udacity nanodegrees get anyone a job without academic background?

#29

No one is going to hire you because you have a degree, whether from a university or from Udacity. They'll hire you because: A) your overall resume is impressive B) you either have a portfolio of things you've built, or else you agree to do a take home assignment and successfully complete it C) you can pass both technical and non-technical interviews To get hired you need A && B && C. Doing Udacity will probably help…

I don't think it's quite that simple. For example there are many companies out there who will filter out resumes without particular degrees or degrees from less prestigious universities. But maybe that is subsumed by your A)

Re: Ask HN: Do Udacity nanodegrees get anyone a job without academic background?

#30

When I come across an applicant with a nanodegree, it almost sends a negative signal. If anything, do the course, leave it off your resume, and if you get an interview, you might impress your interviewer with all this unexpected technical knowledge.

I'm surprised that it sends an negative signal. Is there a reasoning for it? Does completing an online course signify unwanted behavior/personality? I feel like if you leave it off your resume, you probably wouldn't be able to land the interview to begin with.

The problem is that there is almost no barrier to entry for nanodegrees.
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