Maha:
I looked at your resume (the HTML version). You may
want to clean it up (formatting, spelling, basic English
in your job descriptions).
You definitely have the skills that are hot, plus you
have demonstrated experience.
With the holidays approaching, you will have to contend
with delays in people getting back to you, etc. Also, if
you don't have any offers in Raleigh, NC (say past the end
of January), you may want to expand your search and possibly
relocate.
Other Advice:
- I am on my 3rd major job search - here are some pointers.
- Sign your cover letters (if sending out hard copies of
resume) in blue ink. Blue makes the letter stand out.
Sounds corny/weird, but it works. Use a laser printer
for everything. Again, sounds too basic to mention, but I
have seen many dot-matrix or just plain typewriter style
resumes. Remember, the initial screening of your resume
by HR will last (if you are lucky, 15 to 30 seconds). So
the better the resume & cover letter look, the better your
chances. This is the reason the previous poster and myself
suggest cleaning up your resume.
- Print out copies of your references and take them with
you to interviews. Do not send them to the company unless
asked. A lot of companies require you to fill out an
application before the interview. The problem is that
the boxes for doing this are just too small. I start getting
major hand cramps when doing this.
You should fill out the application completely, but the trick
is to paper clip your resume and your references list inside
the application. Basically, the application makes it legal
for the employer to do background checks (contact employers,
references) on you. And your reference sheet makes it easier
on the secretary.
In 3 major job searches so far, I have only had my references
checkes one time. And that was for a minimum-wage job at a
local gas station.
- Take 10-15 copies of your resume with you. Use lighter colored
paper for your resume (I use a light grey). Remember, it's
going to be copied many times via a copy machine. If you have
dark paper - it makes for bad copies.
During the interview, it's perfectly fine to have a copy of
your resume in front of you as you go through the process.
- Always dress professionally for the first interview, even if
the company is casual. It shows respect for the employer, it
may seem corny, but it's one of the "rules".
- Make a standard ASCII text version of your resume. No bolds,
no underlined characters. You can cut and paste this into
various company web sites. HTML and MS-WORD do not usually
work when submitting resume's to company web sites.
Hope this helps,
John Coxey
(
[email protected])
). I am just wondering what is the best way to start a professional career in Java. I have nearly 4 years of professional programming experience with 'C' language, and for the last 1.5 years been associated with all Java related technologies. But not as a professional employee. I took a break from my career due to personal reasons and I used this time to become SCJP and learn Java ,servlets, jsps and JDBC. I can design , code and implement a servlet,jsp,jdbc based web application with MVC design pattern. I developed a medium sized web application and hosted in www.webappcabaret.com which is currenly running. The requrements of this web appln came from real world company and I got permission to host a demo version of it. Also know HTML,JavaScript to use for the needed validations etc. Also has a web site hosted here itself in JavaRanch. My sincere thanks to Paul for this. Just today ( Nov 11, 2000) I posted my resume.
