Chaotic42
Lifer
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SpuriousLogic writes
"I work as a senior software engineer, and a fair amount of my time is spent interviewing new developers. I have seen a growing trend of what I would call 'TV reality' college graduates ? kids who graduated school in the last few years and seem to have a view of the workplace that is very much fashioned by TV programs, where 22-year-olds lead billion-dollar corporate mergers in Paris and jet around the world.
Several years ago I worked at a company that did customization for the software they sold. It was not full-on consultant work, but some aspects of it were 'consulting light,' and did involve travel, some overseas. Almost every college graduate I interviewed fully expected to be sent overseas on their first assignment. They were very disappointed when told they were most likely to end up in places like Decater, IL and Cedar Rapids, IA, as only the most senior people fly overseas, because of the cost.
Additionally, I see people in this age bracket expecting almost constant rewards. One new hire told me that he thought he had a good chance at an award because he had taught himself Enterprise Java Beans. When told that learning new tech is an expected part of being a developer, he argued that he had learned it by himself, and that made it different.
So today I see an article about the growing narcissism of students, and I want to ask this community: are you seeing the sorts of 'crashing down to Earth' expectations of college grads described here? Is working with this age bracket more challenging than others? Do they produce work that is above or below your expectations of a recent college grad?"
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Link
I thought it was an interesting little commentary and article. I was actually talking about this with a coworker not too long ago. At a couple of months from 27, I'm kind of in between being a fresh kid and a working middle-ager. I've been with my company for about five years and I've seen a few people like this.
We had one guy who was about my age, but fresh out of school. He kept coming in late on meeting days and finally the manager asked him to try and be on time. He said that he was embarassed and offended. Later, when someone was going over his work with him, he said he was again embarassed for having his mistakes pointed out in private. He often complained that having to work his eight-hour shift was like being in a sweat shop. He finally quit; I don't know if he had another job or not.
Anyway, I thought this might be something for everyone to read. Obviously not every recent graduate is like this, but it's important to remember that no one is really impressed with your degree, and if you can't do simple things like read and understand documents, ask relevant questions, and admit mistakes, you're going to be outcast if not fired.
The questions thing is important. I've had to point that out to several new employees. I told them that we all knew that they didn't understand everything 100% as that was impossible, especially three days into the job, and that they look silly by not asking questions. It worked. 😛
Anyone have any experiences to share? I only have an Assosiate's Degree from a backwater school, so I'm probably not qualified to discuss education and work experience with some of you. 😉
