[wyclif]

Is it possible to get an entry-level engineering job in the Valley today? It doesn't seem like that's common at all. So if you're just starting out and particularly if you don't happen to have a boutique degree, where are you going to start at entry level as a developer? To me, it sounds like a great way to hire.

[htormey]

Yes, their are plenty of startups with less brand name recognition hiring. A friend of mine from a non technical background managed to get a decent PM job after finishing hackbrite.

Alternatively you can get in the door of a brand name company by doing QA for a year or so.I have multiple friends that transitioned from a liberals arts degree to being developers by first starting in QA. It's totally possible.

Internships are also a good way to get your foot in the door.

[wyclif]

That's interesting; I never thought about the QA angle. Maybe you can say a little more about how that works and what companies?

[htormey]

Good QA people are incredibly hard to find, especially ones that can do automated testing. One of my old managers started at Apple in QA and then transitioned over to being a developer after a year or two. I’ve seen this pattern a number of times. The potential risk is that many organizations won’t allow you to leave QA. That may not be a problem if thats what you want to do. QA can pay quite well if you are doing the right thing.

The way to play this is to go into an organization with a good brand name, work hard, focus on automation as much as possible and if they won’t help you transition over to being a developer leave after two years for a place that will. Having a good brand on your resume will open a lot of doors. Also, if you are going down this road its a good idea to build a portfolio of software on github.

Devops is also a good option to consider. It really depends on what your background is and what skills you bring to the table.

[bcbrown]

That's what I did. I had a degree in Physics, and at the time, Microsoft had a small training program for test developers. I did that for a couple years, and through a pair of job hops, am now a developer at an established startup. I didn't try to switch internally at MS, but I believe it would have been possible.

The one thing I would note, is that QA generally has lower prestige/pay then dev, so if you want to move to dev, be careful about things. Make sure any QA job you take has a significant development component, ideally letting you design and implement decent-sized projects you can point to when interviewing for a dev role.

If you have more questions, email is in profile.

[aidenn0]

The company I work for hires at the entry-level pretty much constantly.