

Ask HN: Switching Tracks? - fredsadri

Hi, fellow hacker newsians -<p>I've been doing Java and Javascript development for about seven years now, and I feel like my learning curve is starting to flatten out. I have a bachelor's and master's degree in computer science, but life and a couple of other circumstances tied me to an enterprise job that has started to tail off in terms of technical challenges. When I've submitted my resume, it seems to be seized upon either by people who want a J2EE programmer (my Java experience) or a web developer (my Javascript and AJAX work) and frankly, there isn't much that interests me in either of those fields beyond a paycheck. When I was in grad school, I did a hell of a lot of coding in C++ on interesting problems (e.g. genetic algorithms, a database driver) just for my own sake, and I've even done some minor contract work that allowed me to use Python, but that gets pushed aside as "irrelevant" when I try to highlight it in an interview or cover letter.<p>What I'd like to do is to get a job doing something that's technically challenging. As I see it, that challenge could either come from new tools (e.g. a new language) or a new task. However, the problem is that as I've accumulated experience, people increasingly see me as a specialist in the Java code I've been writing, and my extracurricular and general qualifications seem to be discarded.<p>I'm curious how people have handled these sorts of switches before. Anyone have any stories or advice?
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timrobinson
Even though you've got Java and web development experience, nobody's saying
that you have to list them on your resume. These skills are in demand, so of
course employers are going to focus on those sections of your resume instead
of the fun parts.

Are you able to perform well on an interview where you'll get tested on C++
and nothing else? If so, list your C++ experience prominently on your resume,
demote Java and web development to tiny bullet points, and start applying to
jobs.

If you don't think you could do yourself justice in a technical interview, get
involved in spare time projects and publicise your work on the web. The good
employers will value your involvement in the development community as much as
they do actual paid work. (This is how I was able to get a functional
programming job: I carried on writing C# at work while teaching myself F# at
weekends. I got to know my fellow F# developers through the web, and I'm now
working with them.)

