[hyunwoona]

Thank you.

You said I have a decent resume content-wise, but is it possible that I am not getting an email from a single company because the resume is formatted or presented poorly?

Is it just the wording and the order of contents, or also the format(template) that need(s) to be improved?

Do you think it would look better if I change the name of the position from Researcher to Research Programmer, and focus as much as I could on the programming side(though there is not much)?

I guess it is a major flaw that I do not know Java related technologies, like Spring, (maybe) Android, and Hibernate.

I don't know about database. I haven't taken any course on database yet.

What do you think is the most urgent for me to learn and do during the 6-week winter break?

Also, if I have two options for my project: part-time contribution for one of Free Software Foundation(GNU) projects vs part-time developing an inventory management software for Rwanda and Tanzania, what do you think looks better?

Thanks!

[throwaway1979]

When I say content, I mean you have done some interesting work and would get called for an interview if you presented it well. Looks like another comment below said the same thing ... your resume ordering is not reasonable at the moment. The same commenter said you should strive for 1 page and I agree with that. You should get rid of your courses as well and just focus on technical skills and work experience.

If you know nothing about databases, then I would say that this is the most important thing to learn. Setup MySQL, create a bunch of tables. Do this by hand as well as with GUI tools like SequelPro. Write some SQL. That should take you a week. The next two to three weeks, learn about concurrent access/locks. Learn how to use a cloud computing environment as well. E.g. Amazon web services. They give micro vms for free btw.

Regarding researcher vs research programmer, think about what job you are applying for. Since you want to apply for a programmer position, it makes sense to sell that aspect of the work as much as possible :-)

If you are really getting desperate, I'll make two more suggestions:

1) Go to meetups/hackathons in your area and network with people. I have a very strong CV and a few degrees from some top schools but even I get called for 1 out of 3 positions that I apply for "in the cold". Networking just means talk to people in a position to hire you or people who know people who can hire you.

2) This is a controversial suggestion so take it with a grain of salt. Consider getting some certifications in an area you want to focus in. I did these when I was younger and it definitely helped. Don't waste money taking classes IMHO. Your 6 week break is enough to get certified in one thing ... be it Java or databases or whatever.

[hyunwoona]

I really want to believe that I will have much better chance if I present it well. I am revising my resume according to the advice given here.

I think it was an excellent choice to change the title from researcher to research programmer.

I have heard database is important, and studying it is now one of the things I am planning to do during the winter. Thanks for the advice. I will get a certificate in either database or system, but after I start working as an intern. The reason is that I need to practice more algorithm to do well on the interview and putting more time developing something or doing coding competition will be more helpful.

Instead of going to meetups/hackathons in my area(I already missed hackathon and I did not find any tech group in meetup in my area that I can go without a car), what do you think of the option of going to Silicon Valley during the winter, taking the expensive cost into account?

Thank you so much for spending your time to give valuable advice.