From Job Search and Applications to Interviews — A Quick Guide to Your First Co-op and Winning Tech Internships while in university
There are many guides out there that outline many ways to get interviews. I have compiled some resources that may be helpful in getting you through the door whether you’re in first, second, third, fourth year, or the more often than we think “fourth-plus” (4+) years!
From Job Search to Application to Interview:
Start by identifying the specific job or internship you are interested in and tailor your application materials accordingly. This includes your resume, cover letter, and any other documents required by the employer. Use the following steps as a guide on getting through that door! Here goes:
- Build up your LinkedIn profile: LinkedIn is a great way to showcase your professional experience and skills to potential employers. Make sure to include information about your education, work experience, and any relevant projects you have completed. See LinkedIn website (look around at examples of great LinkedIn profiles): https://www.linkedin.com/.
- Focus on core concepts: It’s important to have a strong foundation in key engineering concepts such as data structures, algorithms, and CRUD (create, read, update, delete) operations. Make sure you have a good understanding of these concepts and can explain them clearly in an interview. Check out this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBSGKlAvoiM&feature=youtu.be
- Make your projects look great and visible: Whether you have completed a few coding projects on your own or have worked on a team, make sure to showcase your best work on your LinkedIn profile and online portfolio (such as on GitHub or a personal website).
- Apply and network: In addition to applying directly to jobs, consider using resources such as Jumpstart and AngelList (now WellFound) and to connect with recruiters and find opportunities, or websites focused on improving representation such as HBCUConnect and Jopwell (I used this one!). You can also try reaching out to recruiters directly on LinkedIn.
- Prepare for onscreen interviews: Many companies use online tools such as LeetCode, the popular Quora Tech QnA guide (https://techiedelight.quora.com/500-Data-Structures-and-Algorithms-practice-problems-and-their-solutions) or DataStructuresAlgorithms/README.md at master · KaziEmad/DataStructuresAlgorithms (github.com), and HackerRank to test candidates’ coding skills in an onscreen interview. Practice using these tools to get comfortable with the format and improve your skills.
- Practice live coding: Sites like Pramp.com offer the opportunity to practice live coding with a partner in a simulated interview setting. This can be a great way to get comfortable with coding on the spot and receive feedback from an experienced developer. Good Questions to practice in your interview prep are like Two Sum, Sorting Algorithms, Anagram Checker, and any Tree and/or Graph Questions! Don’t be shy to use new resources to help you solve them!
- Find internships: Check out intern.supply for a list of internships available in the tech industry. You can also look for internships on job boards and company websites.
- Follow a study plan: Use resources like LeetCode Study Plan (Study Plan — LeetCode) to guide your preparation and make sure you are covering all the key topics you need to know.
- Consider additional reading: There are many great books available that can help you prepare for tech interviews. Some popular options include “Cracking the Coding Interview” and “Elements of Programming Interviews.” You can use Github to find book summaries and pdfs or many other websites for online copies. Other learning resources are : Freecodecamp, Udacity, LinkedIn Learning, MIT, CS50
- Don’t be afraid to work with others: Feel free to share with others and improving and refining your resume and seeking mentors to learn from theirs and get tips as appropriate.
By following these steps and staying focused and prepared, you can increase your chances of success in tech interviews and land your dream job in the industry.
________________________________________________________________
As I said above, don’t be afraid to try to use new innovative solutions for your interview prep! Here is me using ChatGPT (https://chat.openai.com/chat) to learn about TwoSum problem!
BONUS VIDEO!
Video of An Interview I did on Demystifying the Developer Interview Process for the Jamaica Developer Community (2021)!
Another BONUS, NEGOTIATE!:
When you ge that job offer, don’t forget to negotiate! Check out these resources on doing so effectively:
https://freecodecamp.libsyn.com/ep-12-ten-rules-for-negotiating-a-job-offer
https://freecodecamp.libsyn.com/ep-13-ten-rules-for-negotiating-a-job-offer-part-2
RESOURCES SHARED ABOVE:
https://www.linkedin.com/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBSGKlAvoiM&feature=youtu.be
https://github.com/
https://hbcuconnect.com/
https://www.jopwell.com/
https://jumpstart.me/
https://leetcode.com/
https://www.quora.com/q/techiedelight/500-Data-Structures-and-Algorithms-interview-questions-and-their-solutions
https://www.hackerrank.com/
http://pramp.com/
https://www.intern.supply/
https://leetcode.com/study-plan/
https://www.freecodecamp.org/
https://ocw.mit.edu/index.htm
https://cs50.harvard.edu/
https://www.linkedin.com/learning
https://www.freecodecamp.org/
