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Are you interested in pivoting in tech but need more job experience? You can use several strategies to market your skills and increase your chances of obtaining a career in tech.
Here are ten ways to market your skills and land your dream job in tech.
1. Build a Portfolio
Creating a portfolio of your work is a highly effective way to showcase your skills. Your portfolio could include projects you've completed via college courses or boot camps, self-taught coding examples, or even videos where you're sharing what you are working on or learning. Make sure your portfolio is well-organized and easy to navigate, then add it to your resume to share with tech companies. You can use applications such as Google Sites to help get you started.
2. Networking
Networking is vital in any industry, but it's essential in tech. Consider attending industry events, and tech conferences, engaging in online forums, joining online communities, and connecting with people in your prospective field. Building those relationships with people in the industry can be instrumental in helping you explore tech career opportunities.
3. Learn New Skills
Expanding your skillset may be what sets you apart from other candidates. By taking online courses on Coursera, Udemy, and LinkedIn Learning including attending workshops, you gain new skills and show potential employers that you can keep up with the constant changes in tech. For military veterans, utilize Hiring Our Heroes Career Forward, IVMF O2O Syracuse University, Boots to Books training pathways, and various other resources that support the military community.
4. Volunteer
Volunteering your time and skills to a small business or non-profit can be a great way to gain experience and build your portfolio. It can show potential employers that you're passionate about IT and willing to work hard to achieve your goals. VolunteerMatch is a great organization to get you started on finding that opportunity.
5. Tailor Your Resume
When applying for jobs, avoid sending out the same resume that doesn't highlight the skills and qualifications in the job description. Ensure your resume and cover letter (optional) are tailored to the specific IT requisition. Convey how you will make a great fit by highlighting your relevant skills and experience. Search for examples on Google or speak with a resume expert.
6. Build a Personal Brand
Your brand is all about you; it showcases what motivates you and who you are. LinkedIn is an excellent way for you to showcase your brand. Personal branding will set you apart from the crowd and promote your expertise and personality, so leverage social media thoughtfully and positively.
7. Apply for Internships/Apprenticeships
Applying for internships and apprenticeships at tech companies can help you gain experience, create networking opportunities, aid in learning new skills, and potentially make securing a full-time tech career easier. Check out these companies that offer these opportunities: CompTIA, Google, Accenture, IBM, Airbnb through OurCollective and Microsoft Leap
8. Participate in Hackathons
Participate in hackathons to work on real-world problems and showcase your problem-solving skills. Since tech companies organize many hackathons, they are an excellent opportunity to kickstart your career. To find out if a hackathon is happening near you visit the website: Devpost
9. Get on GitHub
Contribute to open-source projects on platforms like GitHub to gain experience and get noticed by potential employers. You'll also learn to read other people's code, work on issues with others, and learn new technologies and tools.
10. Find a mentor or career coach. Maybe both!
Finding a mentor or career coach could be the icing on the cake for you in terms of narrowing down your focus, crafting your resume, and validating that you have everything you need in order to succeed. There is no perfect way to find either but search for individuals that share a passion for seeing others win, demonstrate compassion, and have been successful in mentoring and career coaching.
By following these ten tips, you can market your skills and increase your chances of landing your ideal career in tech.