Preparing for a proper job

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Razor88

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Hey Everyone.

I am a second year BSc.Computer Science student at UCT. I have never worked (formally) before, and I want to ease into the job environment. I'll be honest though, I don't feel competent enough to do anything particularly useful yet.

What do you guys suggest I do to make my transition into the workplace easier ?
 
Don't take criticism personally - you will fck up and people will rage at you. Block out the rage part and see it as suggestions as to how you can improve.

Razor88 said:
I'll be honest though, I don't feel competent enough to do anything particularly useful yet.
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Well you likely aren't competent yet - which is acceptable given that you have no actual experience yet. Its fine - just learn fast and see above.
 
Also in 2nd year. What I do is I YouTube apps made in C# with tuts. Watch, then do them. I get stuck, I work with my logic, then google's a last resort. Or acquire a complete real world solution then try reverse engineering it bits by bits.
 
Two suggestions:

1) Try do an internship or get some holiday work in the December holidays. Just spending a few months in a real company will go a long way to preparing yourself, and the pressure will be far less.

2) Try build your own app as a project, in whatever it is that you are interested in (preferrably something simple). Try follow some dilligent software engineering practices while you are at it: Design phase (don't just jump in and code), choose yor prototyping tools, develop a prototype, iterate on the prototype, build a production product, develop automated testing system (before you even start building anything production worthy), polish the product (however simple it is), use source control tools, think about your source branching strategy - perhaps work on the same code base with a friend, track your time, see how close your time estimates are, etc.
 
OGroteKoning said:
Fake it till you make it
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+1

Don't LIE about qualifications or what you can do, but change your attitude/mindset about how good you are at what you do and if you don't know something, how fast you will learn and/or good you will be after you've read up on it.

Confidence is key, but there's a fine line between being confident and just looking like you know everything when you don't. I love putting on my boots and splashing on both sides of that fence regularly :)

Also another piece of advice I might give? **** easing yourself into anything. Jump into the deep in with both feet and no life raft or jacket. You'll learn more, faster, than you ever will if you just "ease" into it.
 
I'm pretty sure that your sentiments are shared by most people that leave varsity with no experience. As others have said, its about your ability to learn on the job and the speed at which you are able to grasp how the company operates at different levels. Don't oversell yourself (lie in other words). You're inevitably going to make mistakes but make sure you learn from them and accept your shortcomings.

One thing I have learnt this year is to prioritise - decide which thing deserves your attention most and alert your manager (or someone more senior to you) that these are your priorities for x-number of days.
 
I remember when I started at my first programming job. I was nervous as hell and didn't know what to expect. I had three months to show that I would make it there.

The work they gave me was tough back then and it took me a while to complete but you know what, they saw my drive and that I was willing to work hard. If you are willing to work hard and are good at learning new things on the fly then you'll be fine.
 
HavocXphere said:
Don't take criticism personally - you will fck up and people will rage at you. Block out the rage part and see it as suggestions as to how you can improve.
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This. You will make mistakes, people will come down on you, listen and learn but don't take it personally.

Also, people become a lot more critical of your work when they're paying you to do it (rather than you paying the University), bear that in mind.
 
Pick companies which interest you and where you see growth - then try and get hold of a manager/executive for the particular department and ask if you could work there as an intern. Most companies will properly compensate you nowadays and if you really want to impress you should know the business of the company inside out.
 
Razor88 said:
I don't feel competent enough to do anything particularly useful yet.
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I felt the same way. We all feel incompetent at times, but we make it in the end. Managers know that when they are hiring fresh talent, they are hiring someone that is incompetent in the sense of what the core business of the team is. It is your ability to break down and understand problems that gets you through. You shouldn't compare yourself with others, it will just cause more personal problems.

In terms of code...I rely heavily on Chapin diagrams, mind maps or flow diagrams (that i create myself) before I start coding, no video will teach you to be a better programmer. For me, this was the most important thing that I learned at varsity. So don't spend too much time worrying about work, for now, concentrate on acing your course 'cos com. sci. is a very difficult course.

The pieces will fall into place.
 
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From a personal experience, just go for it. I'm at UCT too and in my 3rd year I was (peer) pressured into applying for a part time software job. I was hesitant at first as it's a proper job, just at my own time and because I didn't think I had the skills. I went for it, got the job and its been amazing. My employer, knowing I'm a student, helped me on all my projects and gave me some le-way with deadlines. He even paid me in advanced (and for work I was still to do) to help fund my travels at the end of last year.

So just for yourself out there.
 
I've interned at 3 different companies.

Get an internship. It beats the hell out of starting a personal project because you learn quite a lot of meta stuff when you are working in a team/under a boss/under a mentor.

At all 3 of my internships I made mistakes this was because of inexperience, this is a very good time to make mistakes like this because it is expected of you. Remember interns are there to learn, most of the time interns do not add much value to the company.
 
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