Ask HN: Is a portfolio a real need for a junior?

[Qision]

Hi, I'm a junior dev currently looking for a job. I'm struggling a bit to find a position, mostly because I lack experience.

Many people on the Internet suggest that juniors should make a portfolio to prove their motivation or take part in open source projects. I am a bit doubtful about the idea of a portfolio, one could easily copy paste some random project from Github. Taking part in open source projects sounds like a better idea.

But honestly, do recruiters really care about all that? On the few interviews I had, only one recruiter asked if have a portfolio and it didn't seem a big deal for him when I said no.

So, what do you think is the best strategy? Make a portfolio, take part in open source or simply keep going applying to jobs?

Thanks in advance!

[syndicatedjelly]

I'm a senior dev, but in the last interview I did, they asked me to bring a project/piece of code I'm proud of, and talk them through it. I have a couple of side projects I work on, so I shared one of those. It was a lot of fun to share something I cared about, and explain every decision I made.

I think the employer got a great opportunity to see how I work, and I got a chance to show off the best side of my skills. Unfortunately, I bombed the technical assessment and didn't get an offer. However, the hiring manager did connect with me after the interview and seemed happy with how I performed in the sharing segment of the interview.

I hope more interviews are run in that manner - so my advice is, have some public code always available that you're ready to share with anyone who asks.

[nilawafer]

Committing code to open source projects is always going to be a stronger example of work than a personal project. It shows you can work with other people, and handle feedback and make changes through the development cycle.

[Zambyte]

Why not make one?