Right place for newly graduates?

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Right place for newly graduates?

LeviHampton

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September 28, 2021 at 7:47 am

#3933813

Hi everyone, I have a brother who just graduated with a programming major. And he seems lost in his own world so i’m here asking y’all where is the right place for newly graduates? Should they work as an intern or an official employee?

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Grant Fritchey SSC Guru Points: 398679 More actions · Answer 1

This isn't a bad place for those newly graduated... BUT

Only if they're working with the Microsoft Data Platform. We have some forums on other database systems and some on development, but we are largely focused on the Data Platform (SQL Server, Azure SQL Database, Reporting Services, etc.).

We have lots of introductory courses, that you can see up above, called Stairways. They'll help. I'd also suggest looking over at Simpletalk, a sister publication. It has a lot more stuff for developers.

Now, whether or not to intern, that's a tough call. My introduction to IT was sort of the kind of thing where they ask for a volunteer and everyone steps back but me. I did not come through what is the traditional route, collge, specifically an IT degree, then find work. I just started working. So, in my mind, being an intern, no. Get a job. Get paid. Yes, you're going to be learning (despite what college may have told him, he really doesn't know a darned thing), but get paid while you do it. However, that's one opinion from some old jerk on the internet. Probably some more research could result in a better answer.

Thanks for stopping by. I hope that helped.

"The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood"
- Theodore Roosevelt

Author of:
SQL Server Execution Plans
SQL Server Query Performance Tuning

Jeff Moden SSC Guru Points: 1003857 More actions · Answer 2

LeviHampton wrote:

Hi everyone, I have a brother who just graduated with a programming major. And he seems lost in his own world so i’m here asking y’all where is the right place for newly graduates? Should they work as an intern or an official employee?

My personal opinion is not to work as an intern unless there are absolutely no jobs to be had and that hasn't happened ever for this world we know as IT.

My recommendation is to get a couple of really good recruiters that will help groom a resume and give you the inside track on jobs that aren't advertised anywhere else. The difference between a mere "head hunter" and a "good recruiter" is large and fantastic. Limit the number to 1 -3 trusted ones.

I am a bit surprised that whatever institution that just graduated your brother hasn't stood up to help. You should talk to them about recommendations and find out if they're able to help. Such a program is usually very helpful because folks will provide the best of both worlds of being both an intern and being paid.

--Jeff Moden

RBAR is pronounced "ree-bar" and is a "Modenism" for Row-By-Agonizing-Row.
First step towards the paradigm shift of writing Set Based code:
________Stop thinking about what you want to do to a ROW... think, instead, of what you want to do to a COLUMN.

Change is inevitable... Change for the better is not.

Helpful Links:
How to post code problems
How to Post Performance Problems
Create a Tally Function (fnTally)

Jeff Moden SSC Guru Points: 1003857 More actions · Answer 3

p.s. I'm also the same as Grant... minding my own business and someone walks in and says I've got a week or two to learn SQL. Welcome to the Vini Veni WTF? club! 😀

--Jeff Moden

RBAR is pronounced "ree-bar" and is a "Modenism" for Row-By-Agonizing-Row.
First step towards the paradigm shift of writing Set Based code:
________Stop thinking about what you want to do to a ROW... think, instead, of what you want to do to a COLUMN.

Change is inevitable... Change for the better is not.

Helpful Links:
How to post code problems
How to Post Performance Problems
Create a Tally Function (fnTally)

Mr. Brian Gale SSC-Insane Points: 24688 More actions · Answer 4

To add to what Grant said, I had a similar introduction to my DBA role. I found a company that did work I was interested in. They were not hiring for a DBA or IT at that time, but they had a "production assembler" position that sounded interesting and I was just starting to have fun soldering stuff at home as a side project.

I had done IT work for friends and family (ie free) previously, so had some IT knowledge but no degree or certificate or anything. BUT I knew some of the IT people that worked there and they put in a good word for me and I got the job in IT. That lasted a few years and I migrated over from IT support to a web admin to a Jr. DBA then a DBA. I never had the goal of being a "DBA" when I started that route - I had thought I'd jump in and be a high level IT guy fixing servers and switches and such, but I am glad I ended at the DBA role as that is what I am good at. I also do some coding (.NET) in my role, so I fit "developer" and "DBA" in my job duties and frequently have to tell myself "no".

I would say that it would be best for them to get paid for their work. Paid internships are not a bad thing to start with. Free internships I would avoid. Internships are nice because you are still "new" to the field and the company you jump in on can shape you how they see fit and you come in with fewer biases and expectations. They are good for the employee because it is a great way to learn. The downside is that they are not guaranteed to be long term positions. Some may offer permanent position at the end of the internship, but not all of them do.

And I agree with grant - college may teach you the fundamentals, but a job is a completely different beast. They have their own standards and best practices that you must follow even if you learned something different. And if you spend your time learning C# (for example) and jump into a company that uses VB6 (for example), it is a lot of stuff to learn.

One thing to keep in mind though - in the technology field, you either never stop learning OR you fall behind. Technology is constantly changing and there are always new features that may or may not apply to your workplace. I was the lead when we set up Service Broker on our system. I did all the research and training on it to make sure that it would work for us and to determine how best to set it up. Took 2 tries to get it set up correctly as I set a few things up poorly first round, but it has been working great ever since!

The above is all just my opinion on what you should do.
As with all advice you find on a random internet forum - you shouldn't blindly follow it. Always test on a test server to see if there is negative side effects before making changes to live!
I recommend you NEVER run "random code" you found online on any system you care about UNLESS you understand and can verify the code OR you don't care if the code trashes your system.