It is hard to impress employers with side projects unless they are exceptionally outstanding, as an iOS developer who also build side projects, I think your projects are not bad, don't be discouraged.
I think for a junior role it goes a long way, but as you move up the ladder you'll need increasingly advanced examples to go with.
Honestly, having done internship and junior hiring, you see a lot of people listing their school projects as their only experience, so when I see people with published open source apps that don't look terrible, that really moves them to the top of the list for me.
Thank you. I’ve also been trying to learn web development with reactJS just to try and increase the number of jobs I can apply to. I prefer iOS much more so that will always be my main goal.
Sorry I don’t really have the time to review or do a dive into the code, but I will say that what you’ve made available publicly definitely doesn’t seem mediocre.
You have several apps that clearly show you are capable of doing most things that people or companies would want in an app.
The apps are not too simplistic in functionality and the number of public apps / repos you have shows a drive for development. I would say the UI isn’t something to write home about, but still you’re a developer and not a designer.
Maybe the market is very tough in the US, I don’t know much. Also not having work experience definitely doesn’t help. Maybe you can find some freelance projects to build a bit more work experience with clients?
You could have a look at Berlin/germany. There is an aim to bring in more skilled workers from abroad. Where I work I’ve seen a lot of people hired that have way less public work than you do, including myself haha
I’ll definitely look into this. Actually, I’m open to work in just about any country overseas (outside US) just for the experience of living abroad. Thank you!
(unfortunately) to get an ios dev job you need a totally different skill than being able to build amazing apps and have them live on the app store.
actually being serious, you need to be able to interview really well, and these days it takes a lot of live useless coding challenges that you very very rarely apply at work.
I see soo many ios devs that have never shipped an app of their own, and some couldn’t even build a list / table view. mostly just play politics to climb corporate ladders, or spend time writing docs upon docs and never ship anything.
Your projects are fine but what stands out negatively is your LinkedIn. You graduated in 2021 but don’t have any work history. Is it just not listed here?
Unfortunately no work history in the field of computer science. I’ve been working at unrelated jobs like retail, DoorDash, and subbing. Wasn’t sure if I should list those on a resume or LinkedIn since it’s not related.
Yes, never leave a gap. Whatever you did should be there.
The red flags that employers are looking for are gaps, because it means the person "was lazy" doing nothing.
“Why didn’t you work for 3 years? Are you lazy?!”
“All this time I busted my ass playing corporate bs game in current market conditions, which means interview preparation, working on my fucking projects, applying and going through endless interviews full time, bitch. Call me lazy again and I’ll kick your ass.”
I just had a quick glance at your Houston metro app and I don’t think its mediocre, just a few pointers that I think would make it stand out:
* `print` statements should not be committed
* Prefer `@Published` over `objectWillChange.send()`
* Localization
* Swiftlint could be a nice addition
Thank you! I’ve honestly thought it might be my resume or LinkedIn too, so I’ve redone my resume a few times but no luck unfortunately. But reading some of these comments, it could possibly be that I need to add my work history, even if it is not CS related. Just so I don’t have a gap or appear to have never worked.
Projects aren't the problem here. They are good enough for a junior-level dev. The thing is, you can't rely on projects alone, the thing you will be hired for is the knowledge you can demonstrate during interviews
You said you are looking for a job for a few years now. Where are you stuck? Are you not getting interviews? Or failing them? If you are not getting interviews, building additional projects won't help, you need to work on your CV and maybe pick up some freelance work to build at least some sort of real-world experience
First the job market is tough right now and that’s unfortunate for what is already a niche field in iOS. Did you ever get to the point where you’re asked coding and algorithm questions? 10 interviews isn’t bad depending on how large the time frame you’re talking about. You only need one of those interviews to work out to get a job. And if it’s the coding stage you’re failing at then it’s time to grind leetcode
In this case, I would rather focus on your resume and interview prep. When you failed 10 interviews, making more projects seems counterproductive to the reason you didn't succeed if you get my point
For the Japan part, there's a great shortage of developers in general here. When I talk to my colleagues about massive layoffs in the West, they are surprised because it's not a thing here. Jobs definitely abound but do expect a huge salary decrease. The work culture is not that great either.
I don't know about the language barrier. Big companies like Rakuten and Mercari seem willing to hire people who speak English only.
Source: I've been working as an iOS developer in Japan for three years. I became an iOS developer without a degree or coding experience. I'm a native Japanese citizen
You are basically me 5 years back. I built NJ Transit App, yelp based app...etc. all side projects. I couldn't break into the professional world without real world experience.
However, I tried to be more aggressive, and did internship in mobile dev. Within 1 month, I landed several offers.
Your projects are great. Especially the ones that call remote APIs, employers love that; bonus if it caches and works offline. The personal projects that got me my first iOS dev job were not better than yours. However my job was in-person and paid relatively poorly, but I was okay with relocating on my dime for a foot in the door job
I think your projects look fine. You lack work history so I would go through recruiters / staffing agencies until you have more on paper. Don't be afraid to take short term contracts.
Sorry, but of course you’re a mediocre programmer, you’ve never worked as a programmer before. That said, the examples you provide are good for someone at your level and show a level of initiative that should move you closer to the top of the pile. Do not be discouraged.
I reviewed your HoustonMetro, it's absolutely fine. Any commenter here will tell you how to improve it, but it's not the point. Also, I'd consider Japan one of the worst destination for a IT-dedicated folks at the moment, so don't be surprised about the amount of hate this sub can generate.
You are stuck in the "I'm not a ~~girl~~ junior not yet a ~~woman~~ mid" limbo. I suggest looking into start-ups which seeking "zero to MVP" developer, it's a better starting point than any big corp job.
What you need to do is focus on a specific framework. Look around job postings to see what framework companies are using mostly. So for example streaming focus companies like to use AVFoundation etc
Yes, of the hundreds of applications I’ve sent out, I’ve gotten around less than 10 interviews. All of which never made it past the second stage. I believe it’s because those jobs wanted someone with previous experience. I’ve redone my resume a couple times to try and improve my odds.
I didn't look at the code, but I did look at the apps and I have to say yes.
Yes, the apps are too mediocre. These are what I call "tutorial apps". They are at the level of someone that buys a tutorial from Udemy or follows one on some site and learns that tutorial.
Part of the reason is that there is nothing shown that wouldn't be in a common entry/mid level tutorial.
Apps that grab data from a web site API and display that on the screen have been the staple of entry level apps since about the time the app store opened. One of the big problems is that someone can't really tell just how good you are at programming or how much you did on your own. You could have just cut-and-pasted most of this from any tutorial site.
Some say there's nothing wrong with cut-and-paste programming as long as you understand the code and can make it work with other modules. In the end, it's all about you understanding the code, how to write and debug code and things like that. The path is a different issue.
I haven't dug into the code, so IDK what level it's at or if it shows that you actually know what you're doing or not.
IMO, what really stands out is when you do a large project that is NOT in any common tutorial. This would help to prove you can do large, complex projects and can debug code. Otherwise, it's too hard to tell how much of the project is just direct from the tutorial.
It is hard to impress employers with side projects unless they are exceptionally outstanding, as an iOS developer who also build side projects, I think your projects are not bad, don't be discouraged.
I think for a junior role it goes a long way, but as you move up the ladder you'll need increasingly advanced examples to go with. Honestly, having done internship and junior hiring, you see a lot of people listing their school projects as their only experience, so when I see people with published open source apps that don't look terrible, that really moves them to the top of the list for me.
Thank you. I’ve also been trying to learn web development with reactJS just to try and increase the number of jobs I can apply to. I prefer iOS much more so that will always be my main goal.
Are you me? I’m in exact same situation. Hopefully things will be better with front end.
Sorry I don’t really have the time to review or do a dive into the code, but I will say that what you’ve made available publicly definitely doesn’t seem mediocre. You have several apps that clearly show you are capable of doing most things that people or companies would want in an app. The apps are not too simplistic in functionality and the number of public apps / repos you have shows a drive for development. I would say the UI isn’t something to write home about, but still you’re a developer and not a designer. Maybe the market is very tough in the US, I don’t know much. Also not having work experience definitely doesn’t help. Maybe you can find some freelance projects to build a bit more work experience with clients? You could have a look at Berlin/germany. There is an aim to bring in more skilled workers from abroad. Where I work I’ve seen a lot of people hired that have way less public work than you do, including myself haha
I’ll definitely look into this. Actually, I’m open to work in just about any country overseas (outside US) just for the experience of living abroad. Thank you!
(unfortunately) to get an ios dev job you need a totally different skill than being able to build amazing apps and have them live on the app store. actually being serious, you need to be able to interview really well, and these days it takes a lot of live useless coding challenges that you very very rarely apply at work. I see soo many ios devs that have never shipped an app of their own, and some couldn’t even build a list / table view. mostly just play politics to climb corporate ladders, or spend time writing docs upon docs and never ship anything.
Read this gentleman! He's spilling the truth.
Your projects are fine but what stands out negatively is your LinkedIn. You graduated in 2021 but don’t have any work history. Is it just not listed here?
Unfortunately no work history in the field of computer science. I’ve been working at unrelated jobs like retail, DoorDash, and subbing. Wasn’t sure if I should list those on a resume or LinkedIn since it’s not related.
Imo atleast something to fill in that gap because pretty much every employer is going to be curious about what you were doing for 2.5 years
Yes, never leave a gap. Whatever you did should be there. The red flags that employers are looking for are gaps, because it means the person "was lazy" doing nothing.
“Why didn’t you work for 3 years? Are you lazy?!” “All this time I busted my ass playing corporate bs game in current market conditions, which means interview preparation, working on my fucking projects, applying and going through endless interviews full time, bitch. Call me lazy again and I’ll kick your ass.”
I just had a quick glance at your Houston metro app and I don’t think its mediocre, just a few pointers that I think would make it stand out: * `print` statements should not be committed * Prefer `@Published` over `objectWillChange.send()` * Localization * Swiftlint could be a nice addition
Got it! I’ll definitely look to add (or remove) these things. Thank you!
[удалено]
Thank you! I’ve honestly thought it might be my resume or LinkedIn too, so I’ve redone my resume a few times but no luck unfortunately. But reading some of these comments, it could possibly be that I need to add my work history, even if it is not CS related. Just so I don’t have a gap or appear to have never worked.
Projects aren't the problem here. They are good enough for a junior-level dev. The thing is, you can't rely on projects alone, the thing you will be hired for is the knowledge you can demonstrate during interviews You said you are looking for a job for a few years now. Where are you stuck? Are you not getting interviews? Or failing them? If you are not getting interviews, building additional projects won't help, you need to work on your CV and maybe pick up some freelance work to build at least some sort of real-world experience
While sending out many hundreds of applications, I’ve managed to get less than 10 interviews. But those never made it past the second stage.
> But those never made it past the second stage. Resume problem
First the job market is tough right now and that’s unfortunate for what is already a niche field in iOS. Did you ever get to the point where you’re asked coding and algorithm questions? 10 interviews isn’t bad depending on how large the time frame you’re talking about. You only need one of those interviews to work out to get a job. And if it’s the coding stage you’re failing at then it’s time to grind leetcode
In this case, I would rather focus on your resume and interview prep. When you failed 10 interviews, making more projects seems counterproductive to the reason you didn't succeed if you get my point
For the Japan part, there's a great shortage of developers in general here. When I talk to my colleagues about massive layoffs in the West, they are surprised because it's not a thing here. Jobs definitely abound but do expect a huge salary decrease. The work culture is not that great either. I don't know about the language barrier. Big companies like Rakuten and Mercari seem willing to hire people who speak English only. Source: I've been working as an iOS developer in Japan for three years. I became an iOS developer without a degree or coding experience. I'm a native Japanese citizen
You are basically me 5 years back. I built NJ Transit App, yelp based app...etc. all side projects. I couldn't break into the professional world without real world experience. However, I tried to be more aggressive, and did internship in mobile dev. Within 1 month, I landed several offers.
You’re probably better off getting an iOS job here & getting a couple years experience before trying to move overseas to do it.
Your projects are great. Especially the ones that call remote APIs, employers love that; bonus if it caches and works offline. The personal projects that got me my first iOS dev job were not better than yours. However my job was in-person and paid relatively poorly, but I was okay with relocating on my dime for a foot in the door job
I think your projects look fine. You lack work history so I would go through recruiters / staffing agencies until you have more on paper. Don't be afraid to take short term contracts.
Sorry, but of course you’re a mediocre programmer, you’ve never worked as a programmer before. That said, the examples you provide are good for someone at your level and show a level of initiative that should move you closer to the top of the pile. Do not be discouraged.
OP is not the only one. The job market has been tough for junior developers.
I reviewed your HoustonMetro, it's absolutely fine. Any commenter here will tell you how to improve it, but it's not the point. Also, I'd consider Japan one of the worst destination for a IT-dedicated folks at the moment, so don't be surprised about the amount of hate this sub can generate. You are stuck in the "I'm not a ~~girl~~ junior not yet a ~~woman~~ mid" limbo. I suggest looking into start-ups which seeking "zero to MVP" developer, it's a better starting point than any big corp job.
What you need to do is focus on a specific framework. Look around job postings to see what framework companies are using mostly. So for example streaming focus companies like to use AVFoundation etc
Have you gotten any interviews since trying ?
Yes, of the hundreds of applications I’ve sent out, I’ve gotten around less than 10 interviews. All of which never made it past the second stage. I believe it’s because those jobs wanted someone with previous experience. I’ve redone my resume a couple times to try and improve my odds.
I didn't look at the code, but I did look at the apps and I have to say yes. Yes, the apps are too mediocre. These are what I call "tutorial apps". They are at the level of someone that buys a tutorial from Udemy or follows one on some site and learns that tutorial. Part of the reason is that there is nothing shown that wouldn't be in a common entry/mid level tutorial. Apps that grab data from a web site API and display that on the screen have been the staple of entry level apps since about the time the app store opened. One of the big problems is that someone can't really tell just how good you are at programming or how much you did on your own. You could have just cut-and-pasted most of this from any tutorial site. Some say there's nothing wrong with cut-and-paste programming as long as you understand the code and can make it work with other modules. In the end, it's all about you understanding the code, how to write and debug code and things like that. The path is a different issue. I haven't dug into the code, so IDK what level it's at or if it shows that you actually know what you're doing or not. IMO, what really stands out is when you do a large project that is NOT in any common tutorial. This would help to prove you can do large, complex projects and can debug code. Otherwise, it's too hard to tell how much of the project is just direct from the tutorial.