[saxman]

I've been trying for a few years to have a job as a programmer. I know C, C++, x86 and 68k assembly, a little Python, and more recently Java along with J2EE components like JSP, Struts, Hibernate, and Spring. My overall experience is about 10 years.

The problem? My college degree is a 2 year degree in business management. I have about 2 months of daily J2EE experience that I learned through a staffing company. They want me to fabricate my work experience of the last 4 or 5 years by putting on my resume that I was a programmer at these companies I worked at and make up some projects I supposedly worked on. I told them I wasn't going to do that, so they took the fabrication off the resume. They told me though that it was very doubtful I'd get a job doing it my way. They're paying me $290 per week, but those checks stop in about another week because the contract guarentees pay for only 8 weeks. After that, I'll only be getting $150 per week, which is not enough to live on. Even $290 isn't cutting it, but I can at least make due for a while on that.

Of the few programming interviews I've recieved, one I'm pretty sure I was underqualified for, one I probably asked for more than they wanted to pay, and one I just wasn't well-prepared for the interview. I don't know what to do, but I dread quitting this staffing company and going back to fast food or grocery full-time.

Does anyone experienced with the industry have any tips? I know I can do the work, but my luck hasn't worked in my favor thus far.

[RGamer2009]

I know its not much, but you could try looking through some of these:

http://jobs.monster....ammer-jobs.aspx

Hope you find a good job soon!

[Glitch]

It can be done! I have no formal education in software dev. I didn't go to university. I'm a professional Java developer at a leading retail software house.

The best advice I can give is to play your strengths: show your experience. Include a list of your projects in your resume - even the silly ones that you don't think matter. Include the Sonic hacking. It all counts. I've found that, in most cases, experience trumps certification. You just need to show your prospective employer that you can do the job.

That said, don't try and jump the gun. It might be worth trying to get a 3rd-line support role in a software house. Learn the systems and work up from there.

If you intend interviewing for JEE jobs, make sure your core Java skills are up to scratch.The main interview topics are usually:

- Design patterns, e.g.:

• Name 3 design patterns and explain their usage.
  
• Where might you find examples of Chain of Responsibility, Decorator and Strategy in the core Java libraries?
  
• Where might you use a Mediator?
  
• Why should singleton be avoided (in most cases) - focus on testability & dependency injection

- JDBC & general database:

• what's the difference between a type 2 and a type 4 JDBC driver?
  
• Explain what is meant by the terms "read committed" transaction isolation level and "read uncommitted".
  
• What is the purpose of an ORM framework (might be good if you can name a few of their flaws too).

- Concurrency:

• How might you avoid using synchronized blocks/methods in a concurrent environment (think: java.util.concurrent.locks.Lock, AtomicInteger, AtomicReference)

- Garbage Collector

• Describe a few methods of managing garbage collection pauses (e.g.: avoiding heap allocations).

There are plenty of sites out there with good tips for working on your interview skills. Monster have some good resources. It's all about having confidence in your skills and being able to sell yourself.

I hope at least some of this made sense: it's late and this is a bit of a brain-dump.