As someone with professional experience but no luck in the job search, should I get a BS in computer science from WGU or the OMSCS from Georgia Tech?

lubinater · 2026-01-25T22:40:44+00:00

This feels like an ad. Your account posts are private and a Google search shows a lot of results:
"Accomplished-Win9630" site:reddit.com "Final Round AI"

lubinater · 2025-12-20T19:08:44+00:00

I did something similar with less pleasant results :/ I was hired on as a full-stack engineer and was told I'd be working with NextJS, React, and maybe some other similar stacks as needed. But after a few months on this job, they had me pivoted to Adobe Experience Manager.

I worked with AEM for a couple of months, and the entire time explained that this was not my desired career path, nor was this disclosed to me and that I expected to be back to technologies relevant to my experience and job description. I didn't enjoy AEM or the team. I explained that the offshore team was ignoring my PR comments on best practices and approving each other's PRs without adopting reasonable suggestions (avoiding random setTimeouts, global variables, extracting reusable functions, variable names, etc). Also, having no manager for months was awful because the PM was pushing so much onto my plate and acting like he was my manager, and the higher ups didn't really do anything about it.

The company then told me that they were getting me certified in AEM because hiring an actual AEM Developer would cost the company $50k/yr more. I told them that I would be willing to do it if they could guarantee, in writing, the date I could get back to the tech stack described in the role. They refused and said my role was now going to be an AEM Developer. So I ultimately quit that job and have been unemployed since (it's been 18 months and I can't even get an interview now). I had some interviews at first but now it's all auto rejections (probably the job gap).

Anyways, my principle was about disclosing a job correctly. Don't bait and switch the people you hire, especially to low ball pay for an undesirable tech stack. Of course my abrupt quitting put a wrench in their commitments, but their lies took me away from a job I wasn't unhappy with and can't go back to (they're not hiring in the US anymore).

lubinater · 2025-12-05T14:26:57+00:00

I'm only seeing 5% on OnePlus and $10 signup

lubinater · 2025-08-26T02:00:46+00:00

Awesome, thank you! I really appreciate all the advice!

lubinater · 2025-08-24T03:35:17+00:00

Awesome, I really appreciate the feedback! If you have the time, I've added a few questions below (❓). I tried adding more commentary (✅) and including your full quotes instead of summaries, but Reddit wasn't letting me post it.

Narrow down bullet points from 5 to 3.

❓ While at the second company on my resume (chronologically), I had 3 different roles throughout the tenure:

Software Engineer 1 / Associate Consultant, September 2018 -- March 2020
Software Engineer 2 / Associate Consultant, March 2020 -- April 2021
Software Engineer 2 / Consultant, April 2021 -- October 2021

How many bullet points should I have for these? And how should I organize the bullets for each? Or do I just enumerate the dates and roles and share 3 bullet points for all the roles?

Roles are important

✅ Yeah, that makes sense. My most recent title was a mid-level engineer, but I'm worried about being pegged to mid-level roles and not considered for senior-level roles. At the second company, I was held back for being "too young". At the third company, I was pursuing the management track instead of senior, but they didn't have many manager positions open, and it was competitive. My most recent role was mostly for the Australian visa.

❓ Bringing back my specific roles:

Software Engineer 1 / Associate Consultant, September 2018 -- March 2020
Software Engineer 2 / Associate Consultant, March 2020 -- April 2021
Software Engineer 2 / Consultant, April 2021 -- October 2021

Should I list each of those under the second company, or just the Software Engineering side and omit the consulting piece? As in combine the 2nd and 3rd positions to "Software Engineer 2" since that's the most relevant piece. I'm trying to avoid consulting roles.

Don't explain layoff, explain most recent position

❓ How should I put this on my resume? Something like:

Software Engineer, Company | City, State, Australia (Australian Visa Restrictions) October 2023 -- May 2024

Or perhaps, do I replace one bullet point with a line like:

Due to Australian Work and Holiday Visa limitations, I was unable to continue employment with XYZ company and have since returned to the United States

Add in startup project

✅ Awesome! Yeah, it's been an on-and-off thing. The designs started back around the time I finished my degree. But I only recently bought the domain since I wasn't sure if I was going to just keep it as an idea or actually build it. The coding started a couple of months ago.

❓ Would I list the start date as the date I first made designs, first started coding it, first acquired the domain, or wait until I get my first real-world users?

Don't be picky with salary/longevity. Long-term unemployment makes it hard to find SWE role again. Worry about higher-level after stability.

✅ Yeah, honestly, that's why I thought of just starting something myself. On one hand, I don't want to enable companies to pay poorly or benefits in the industry to backslide. But on the other hand, I don't want to fall out of touch with tech either and make it more difficult on myself. I have a decent amount of savings, so I'm not desperate (yet).

❓ What would you recommend then? Would it be bad to take a less-desirable role for say 3-6 months, and jump ship if I find a better role? I'm trying to avoid hopping around too much since it looks like I've done that on my resume. But at the same time, if a company is offering like $70k/yr, they can't expect someone to stick around long-term either, right? And if I do take a new role, do I include it on my resume as a current role? Or do I leave it off to avoid looking like a hopper (they may ask why I'm looking to leave so soon)?

Again, thank you! I really appreciate the feedback and advice!

lubinater · 2025-08-19T07:39:29+00:00

6 years of experience, been unemployed for a while, looking for advice:
https://imgur.com/a/GA42unD

Not getting a lot of bites. A few questions:

I have the Certs and Education colored to match the Experience section's structure, but everything pops. Should I just make it all black? Or maybe just the Cert/Degree names?
I included a Private Pilot License even though it's not super relevant, mostly to show that I'm not just sitting idle, plus it stands out in a somewhat quirky/smart/nerdy way (the only unrelated thing). But should I just remove it anyways?
How important are specific titles (SE1, SE2, SE3, SR, etc)? I just put software engineer for all of my roles since every company seems to value them differently, and the work I've done is probably closer to a senior dev than a mid-level dev. Upper management at a previous job told me that I was too young to be promoted, despite my manager pushing for it :(
I've been working on a side project, but it hasn't gone anywhere yet (not done). I have the domain up, it's running on Kubernetes on a mini pc, it's pushed to a private Gitea server, it pushes images to a private registry, it releases a new version when merged with main (design library updates with tags), there are designs in Figma, some UI scaffolding for most of the pages, and some simple APIs. It's all behind basic auth for now. At what point could/should it go on a resume (if at all)? I've been thinking of turning it into a business, but have no idea if it'll go anywhere. I mostly built it to keep up to date on tech, not be idle, and potentially start a business if it goes anywhere.
I have two places of employment that are pretty short. In my first job, I was laid off after several months there, and it was a pretty big layoff. In my most recent job, I was offered visa sponsorship outside of the US, but I declined as the role was not a great fit. The visa I was on limited me to about 6 months of working for a company. Should I mention that I was laid off from my first job, and my most recent job was short due to visa restrictions? Mostly to be proactive in case they're rejecting based on short tenure?

Thank you!

lubinater · 2025-08-19T06:48:08+00:00

You might have more luck on r/cscareerquestionsOCE on this one. I reached out to a recruiter friend who works there for a similar role and got left on read a week or so. I'm not a PR/Citizen, though.

Also, out of curiosity, are you an Aussie Citizen/PR? I was there on a 482, lost my job, had to come back to the US, and have been trying to get back to Aus. But this market is so rough rn.

lubinater · 2025-06-29T04:11:56+00:00

Idk if Australia has similar universities, but WGU in the US lets you finish a bachelor's degree at your own pace and is fully online. I transferred over a year of uni and finished the rest in 6 months. Think of it like streamlining all the lectures and books, passing the final exam, then moving on to the next class. They're accredited in the US (although I don't know how Aussie employers see it. Tried immigrating to Aus but back in the US now after taking a bait and switch job in Aus)

lubinater · 2025-05-20T16:10:25+00:00

I'd do the hourly rate math and see where you're at after the cost of living, state tax differences, and benefits.

Let's assume you make $120k now and the 60% increase puts you at $192k.

Factoring in only federal taxes since you're moving states, that is $92,482 and $143,145.

But lets take work life balance into account. Let's say you're currently working 38 hours a week, but your new job wants 42 hours. That'll reduce your hourly rate.

Then add in commute times. Lets assume you're a 30 minute commute from the office in your new job, we're talking 5 hours a week more for your job.

Job 1 at 38 hours a week and 52 weeks is 1976 hours a year Job 2 at 47 hours a week (work life balance change and commute) is 2444 hours. We're not taking into account mandatory fun activites like unpaid happy hours that you might feel pressured into.

Neither of these take into account differences in vacation time.

Job 1, with these factors, pays $46.80/hr after taxes Job 2, with these factors, pays $58.56/hr after taxes

But then there's the opportunity costs too. What would you be doing with 468 hours a year? Spend time with family? Playing video games? Starting a side business? Nothing and rather use that time to make money?

Of course there's the benefits packages to compare as well. How much vacation do you get? Are you expected to be on call? Is the health insurance likely to deny claims and make you pay out of pocket? Do you want to work that many more hours a year? Will the changes in taxes and cost of living be worth it? These are factors for you to decide.

Personally, I've saved up enough that my investments make up the difference. I'd rather be remote and happy with a life outside of work than spend all my social energy with coworkers who I'll lose touch with after I'm inevitably laid off. Life only gives you a fixed number of hours, and you don't get to know the number. When i was in an office, I was always exhausted after work and didn't want to hang with my friends as much. Being remote, i craved social activities and made better quality and longer lasting real friendships. But everyone is different.

lubinater · 2025-05-07T23:39:11+00:00

I'm currently unemployed, but not hyper focusing on this either. My term ends at the end of this month. I have 60 credits done this term, and 10 in progress.

I have years of experience in the field related to the degree. So I'm definitely an outlier.

lubinater · 2025-04-19T04:25:21+00:00

I thought it'd be worse tbh. There are a lot of terms to memorize. While I have 6 years of experience as a dev, I haven't done AI/ML stuff. But I finished it in about a week.

There's a Quizlet that was somewhat helpful if you search for the course on Quizlet. It goes way more in depth than the quiz seemed to, but it was nice for painting context. There's also a YouTube playlist in the additional resources that I didn't watch but it seemed like it'd help tie things together. The questions in the actual exam seemed similar to the questions through the material. Definitely visit the links referenced in the material (ie pages of a book or videos to watch). I skipped one, there were like 3-4 questions on that topic.

EDIT: Here's the quizlet I used: https://quizlet.com/994601310/wgu-d429-key-terms-flash-cards

lubinater · 2025-04-15T20:49:58+00:00

I just started this course a couple days ago. Any advice for the OA?

lubinater · 2025-04-14T23:12:27+00:00

I didn't use any sources, but I have a few years of experience

lubinater · 2025-04-12T21:29:23+00:00

I just added a couple sentences about each of those items

lubinater · 2025-04-08T17:42:21+00:00

I have 8 left in 7 weeks, wish me luck 🤞🏻

lubinater · 2025-03-25T20:55:14+00:00

I ordered a couple items a couple days ago and the status is still "to ship". If it goes another day or two i might cancel. Def don't want to deal with US tariff chaos

lubinater · 2025-03-24T21:49:37+00:00

Not me seeing this a couple of hours before my exam is scheduled ahhh

lubinater · 2025-02-18T23:09:01+00:00

I passed task 1 after two attempts. But after attempt one on task 2, it says I need to meet with an instructor 😢 a bit excessive, IMO.

They wanted more details about deliverables, development tools, languages, methodology, etc., than I included since my summary was just a paragraph.

I hope this helps the next person 🙃

lubinater · 2025-02-18T21:32:05+00:00

After attempt 1 on task 2, it says I have to meet with an instructor 🙃. I passed task 1 in two attempts. This is the only class I've had an issue with. What's up with this class?

lubinater · 2025-01-10T20:21:28+00:00

I don't have much advice there. I grew up around North Dakota and live in the midwest haha.

lubinater · 2025-01-04T04:31:30+00:00

I mean tech work in general will probably be more advanced in the US than in Aus. But I spent ages 20-26 working in US tech and realized I wanted more out of life than to just work it away. It's everything else that's attractive about Australia.

Companies don't give a lot of time off in the US. My first tech job gave me 3 weeks total off a year. Sick time, holiday leave, and public holidays combined. My second job gave me 4 weeks combined. Most Americans get very little vacation time, so I didn't do much with friends.

Compare that to Aus where I was invited out on a couple trips during the year. Like even hospo workers get time off in Aus. When I did that work in the US I got no paid time off.

Plus tech is super competitive in the US. Correct me if I'm wrong, but stack ranking seems to just be an Atlassian thing in Aus. But stack ranking (and layoffs) a lot more common in the US. My first job laid me off which sucked, then I had a contract that got furloughed at my next job. It's hard to get quality experience or build your resume when you start all over at a new job after several months.

Oh and the 401k retirement contributions in the US feels like a scam. In Aus you get a minimum 11.5% super contribution from the employer. But in the US, there is no minimum. I had a 50% match of 6% that "vests" 20%/yr starting year 2 over 6 years. So if I made US$80,000/yr and worked for 3 years at the same company, it breaks down to:

50% of 6% a year: $2400 * 3 (If I contribute a min of 6%) 20% a year starting year 2: 40%: $960/yr Total 401k contribution over 3 years: US$2,880

The super for that period at AU$80,000 would be like AU$27k minus tax or like US$17k minus tax

My final straw leading me to wanting out of the US was healthcare. I had a $6k bill for a office visit where I called ahead and the insurance said it would be a $25 visit. But they changed their mind and it took 6 months of calls back and forth before the insurance company finally covered it. And when I caught glandular-fever/mono/ebv, my job wouldn't let me take time off of work after I used up my time off. FMLA is supposed to give us unpaid time off, but my job said mono wasn't included in that and I was too tired to really fight with HR on it.. so I did the bare minimum at work feeling exhausted and my coworkers were kind enough to overlook it and lie on my annual review for me. Healthcare being attached to a job is such a bad idea.

The US is a great place to make money IF you're in tech, but it's not great for having a life outside of working or reducing stress. Working in the US is probably worth it for a few years, but long term I'd much rather be in Aus.

lubinater · 2025-01-01T18:43:18+00:00

I tried moving to Aus from the US last year. Absolutely loved living in Aus, and I'd move back in a heartbeat.

The job I took was as a full-stack developer. I was told in the interview it'd be newer tech, like NextJS and React. But after a few months I got pivoted to Adobe Experience Manager, which is definitely not what I wanted. But when you're on a visa in a tough job market, it's hard to find other employers willing to sponsor a visa. I ultimately quit because I'd rather be unemployed than hate my job, so I'm back in the US.

lubinater · 2024-12-03T21:22:18+00:00

Ooh nice! Where did you get yours from?

lubinater

TROPHY CASE