Ask HN: Why am I not getting any interview calls?

[coo1k]

I am a Java developer with 12 years of exp working for same company.Couple of years ago I got shortlisted by Amazon and 2 other companies, but couldn't clear interview.I gave up after a while.

This year I started trying again. I am targeting Seattle area specifically. I don't have much of a network, so I search jobs on indeed.com. However this year I am not even getting replies to my applications. It's like radio silence. What could be the reason?

1. Maybe my resume indicates I am not a good programmer? but then how did I get calls last time I tried?

2. Are the chances for job application without any employee referral very low?

3. Maybe nobody needs a programmer with 12 year experience. In fact, most jobs I see on indeed.com ask for 5-6 years of experience.

4. Maybe working for same employer so long is playing against me. If thats the case, I can't fix that.

5. My company uses technologies that are 5-6 years older. Maybe thats the reason? I keep myself updated by doing some sample projects, but most companies are looking for hands-on experience rather that just studying on my own.

6. I don't have official management experience. Maybe companies think why this guy is not leading people despite having so much experience? I mentor my colleagues all the time, but I was never in a tech lead or team lead position. My company once asked me to lead people, but I refused because wasn't interested that time. But now I regret it.

7. I don't have a CS degree, although I am an engineer. But I really doubt if that matters.

Were you in this position ever? If yes, what did you do?

Edit: This is what my tech stack looks like. Don't want to post my entire resume here.

Languages- Java, JavaScript, PL/SQL, Objective-C, Swift, Python, Perl

J2EE-JSP, Servlet , JDBC , Jersey, Spring, Hibernate, JPA, RMI, EJB, JUnit, Log4J, Ant, Gradle, Maven, KaOa

Web- HTML5, Java Script, JSON, JQuery, ExtJS, Less, AngularJS, BackboneJS, NodeJS

[JamesBarney]

Summary

1 - no one can answer this without seeing your resume(you could trying changing names of company/project/you)

2 - there are lots of jobs filled through indeed/etc..

3 - people are looking for dev's with experience

4 - some younger companies will see this as a mark against you, a lot of companies will see this as a benefit.

5 - easily fixable, build a side project put technology on resume.

6 - it's not management experience specifically but it might be a lack of visible career advancement(to the recruiter)

7 - most companies count engineering degrees~~CS degrees)

Fixes

Apply to older more established companies.

Build a couple of side projects with with new tech then put on resume

Make sure to craft story in your resume of career progression. Even if your title stayed the same show how your responsibilities and business value have grown.

So you don't have any problems a little elbow grease can't fix :).

[WalterSear]

> My company uses technologies that are 5-6 years older. Maybe thats the reason? I keep myself updated by doing some sample projects, but most companies are looking for hands-on experience rather that just studying on my own.

This jumps out at me. HR people just use buzzwords now and may not even be passing you any further down the funnel. People down the funnel will see this and assume that you stopped learning new tricks 6 years ago, and overestimate the distance between your current skillset and their tech stack.

I'd suggest open sourcing something relatively current. It's not enough to make toy projects for yourself: you need to make things publicly, and things that are actually useful to others.

Good luck.

[coo1k]

Thats a great advice. I recently developed lot of interest in machine learning. I could probably create something useful out of it.

[pmorici]

Applying to jobs on indeed / monster and similar sites has got to be about the worst way to look for a job. You might have better luck looking for opportunities on more niche job websites that are more software engineering centric or perhaps even targeting Java. Having 12 years of experience and only knowing a single language certianly doesn't look good either.

http://stackoverflow.com/jobs

[coo1k]

I do know other languages. It's just that Java is primary language used at work. I've updated my post with my tech stack.

[gregjor]

Focus on how you can contribute to solving business problems, not on your "tech stack." No business has a need for more Java code. What they need are people who can understand business requirements and solve problems.

http://typicalprogrammer.com/job-hunting-and-interviewing/

[macca321]

Many, many businesses hire dedicated people for that (Product Owners/BAs etc.) and have a budget to hire programmers to make more Java code.

[ljw1001]

You should post your resume.

[coo1k]

I have posted my tech stack.