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Comment Re:Other reasons (Score 1) 306

"You started at $40,000 if you had a degree in anything business. medical, or science related back then."

Simply, bullshit.

I graduated from high school in 1986, college (u of mn) in 1990 with a degree in international relations, with minors in German, geography, and European area studies, all of which at the time were considered desirable (if non specific) subjects. Minimum wage at the time was, iirc $4.25/hr. I started my first career level job in international business (specifically logistics) at $20k. I was delighted to make more than my age around age 27-28?

  To suggest that $40k jobs were falling like manna is just complete nonsense.

Yep

Ok according to http://www.usinflationcalculat... $20,000 in 1990 = $36,204.90

FYI inflation is not accurate anymore as it does not cover food, cost, insurance, and higher education costs! So in essence image in 1990 if $20,000 required 5 years of experience to top it off :-)

That my friend is what recent grads have to contend with plus $1,000 a month for a 1 room apartment in most metropolitan areas to top it off which is not counted in inflation

Comment Re:Not quite a counterpoint (Score 3, Insightful) 306

I was hired by an Indian outsourced (I am local) and they brought in a consultant who would like for references and made a fake resume for me. I quit in disgust!

The problem is when people do this shit HR will simply demand more on a resume and look for keywords in Taleo and rank them by score and filter out all the good people. Resume inflation was also an issue but it really did start in outsourcing companies.

You put an unrealistic demand and a million headhunters from Bangalore say my guys have 10 years of experience in HTML 5 and what are you going to do?

Not saying your guys did this per say? But it hurts natives too as management gets the impression $45,000 a year is the average for a senior developer who has 8 years experience in 5 dozen languages and will now consider no less.

THe worst is Taleo that HR uses. It was never designed to do HR's job but the salespeople mentioned hey do your HR stuff while my website does the recruiting for you etc. So it scans for keywords and only the top 5 ranks get emailed to the secretary for the interview ... all the ones from Bangalore with 10 years experience in HTML 5.

Comment Re:Other reasons (Score 1) 306

The average starting salary for CS graduates in 2014 is $60,000. Engineers are $62,000. The average business graduate is $54,000. So sorry, you are completely wrong.

Ok we are in a bubble right now for 1 major in particular. I was told by folks here to avoid IT as only Indians would do these jobs by now back in 2006.Most of you all were soo wrong.

I majored in business and yes only a few us had jobs that paid $13/hr - $16/hr.

I had experience so I could make just a little more less than 40% of what I used to make pre-Great Recession. Of course in 2015 the labor market is much better than this horrible one I was in back then.

Ask any young slashdotter here who is right on this? Can someone with an art degree make $50,000 a year fresh out of college with no experience??! Ha

We hire them at work for $12/hr to answer phones. Many are pissed off and end up being fired for no call no show as they somehow feel entitled to a job. Thankfully I make more but my point is major in what you love IS STUPID today. It is suicide unless it is in a high demand field and you already have years of experience and letters of recommendation from previous bosses from internships.

Comment Re:Undergrad doesn't matter (Score 1) 306

"Yes years of experience is what counts yada yada, but how do you get them?"

Apprenticeship and trades. Stop trying to take a short cut. your lazy 16 year old ass should have been in an apprenticeship program and you would have came out at age 21 with 5 years of experience as an electrician and making a LOT more than the dolts with a BA just graduating with $80K of debt.

FYI for the record I am not lazy and do make ok money thank you very much.

But my point was apprentice ships seem to be only for college kids. Not for Joe's working at 7-11 trying to better himself to a new life. So the point is if you go to school TAKE them.

Yes I would not be in the IT field if I did not have a degree as my 1st consulting gig. FYI they didn't care if it was IT the client demanded just a bachelors.

Comment Re:HR departments (Score 1) 306

HR guy: "We need people who are 22 years old with an M.Sc. and 20 years of specific experience, and we can't find any."

C-level exec: "See, I told you we can't find qualified domestic hires and we need to ramp up the H-1B visas."

I know you meant this as silly but it really is hard to find people with specific skillsets in certain areas. A degree in CS won't give someome knowledge of a particular framework used by the company as an example. They need someone to come right in and work the 1st day and have a proven track record of holding onto a job for more than a year etc.

Comment Re:Undergrad doesn't matter (Score 1) 306

It does and does not in many ways.

Yes years of experience is what counts yada yada, but how do you get them? A HS diploma won't mean much but what is your worth without even that or a GED? It is a rough world in 2015 for new grads compared to 2000 or any other time in US history. A degree in the right area, plus and I mean a big emphasis on plus internships + work experience. Even if you only work sorting files in a cabinet for HR one summer that means a letter of recommendation.

These 2 separate the students who move back in with their parents and work at Walmart and those who get a shot at a white collar entry level job in an office somewhere. Those that survive this then can move up and live a so called normal life from the previous generation.

So a right major in college is useful to gain that 1st experience in internships or temp agency work that seperates you from Joe Six pack who completed highschool with an IQ of 90 to the sea of resumes.

Comment Re:Other reasons (Score 4, Interesting) 306

Seems like the biggest reason not to pick your career based on the economy is this: you'll probably won't like the job. So, instead of doing something you enjoy, you get to spend 50 years doing a job you hate.

Now, if you guessed right, maybe you'll hate your job, but at least make some money. But if you guessed wrong - you'll have huge student loans to pay, and a lifetime of misery, all because you' placed money above your happiness.

Beats no job at all and living with your parents when done.

Shoot. I graduated in 2009. 13/hrs was considered GOOD for recent graduates!

I was an older student who went to work 1st and went to college later and my HS classmates were class of 2000. Wow, what a change these younger millenials have no clue what life would be like if they were born 10 years earlier. If any reader graduated in 1970 - 2001 you know nothing what it is like to today and the kind of crappy jobs and low wages await someone with no experience here in 2015. For the younger slashdotters reading this did you know back in the good old days you could make up to $40,000 a year as en entry level salary? No really. You did not need 5 years experience and a major in the right area for an entry level job. You started at $40,000 if you had a degree in anything business. medical, or science related back then. Today these older folks say major in what you like?

For the older slashdotters it is 2015 and having a job you hate for 40 years is better than moving in with your parents and working at Walmart with your art degree while your phone rings from debt collectors wanting student loan repayment and threatening car repossessions. Which is where many if not half of new recent college grads end up shockingly. Of course graduating in 2009 was the worst in 70 years but it shocked me as my friends who made it big all started in 2000 and are now frankly much more successful as a result. Sigh.

I lucked out as I had a resume and even if I made less money after a degree as I put some career prospects on hold and HR only cares about experience and the degree today is worth toilet paper as you are a dime a dozen and you are marked for life if God forbid you majored in the wrong area or do not already have 3 - 5 years experience before entering the workforce complete with 3 professional references for that golden $40,000 a year job.

Comment Re:Stop excuses and take responsibility (Score 1) 117

You're funny, the size of company that worries about PCI compliance is not the kind where most win 2003 is running.

if employer doesn't want to spend money, then it won't get done. IT people still need their jobs even if their employer is like that. Stop talking big, you're not going to cough up money to solve anyone's problem

I see so when shit hits the fan it will be on you! If you agree with this then you endorse it and are part of the problem. I would update my resume as it is a losing situation at this stage. Part of the job is selling to management.

Comment Stop excuses and take responsibility (Score 2) 117

First, what kind of company doesn't have a budget set for lifetime for equipment?

Second, eol means more than just Windows Update. It me no liability insurance, Pci Compliance if you take credit cards, No drivers, etc.

Third, it means things like future versions of AD and software tools won't be compatible

Last XP had 2 big attacks where MS had to break EOL to fix one.

You are IT and are responsible for keeping your skill sets and employers equipment up to date.

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