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by brador 4015 days ago
No experience? Make a portfolio of your work.

Look, you're selling yourself to the employer/HR. They want the lowest risk with highest upside they can get so they don't get fired for hiring you. If you throw a portfolio at them of good work, they can say, hey, this dude/dudette is a low risk bet. They've covered their ass and you're hired.

1 comments

> No experience? Make a portfolio of your work.

Yes, I've been doing that. I get close to getting hired often this year but they usually find some reason to not hire me. "We think you're a great hire, a really smart person, but ..."

Anyways, having a portfolio is no guarantee, or even a help. The only time people really look at it is if they are already close to hiring you. As in, they really, really want to but there's something else stopping them. Other than that, no one looks at a portfolio.

A good github will not save me, maybe not help me, but can definitely hurt me if they don't like what they see.

I was already told by one potential employer that some code I had written in a pinch for a project looked wrong so no hire.

Curate your portfolio, show only your best work.

The best case would be to have experience, without that you need a portfolio. But as you have seen, the portfolio is only to get you through the filter to an interview seat. Then it's up to you to sell yourself and your skills.

> Curate your portfolio, show only your best work.

You say these things like I hadn't thought of them. :p :)