As others said, internships are a big part of full time hiring, and the 3.0GPA seems to not be an issue at all.
Would he consider looking into doing a co-op during a Fall/Spring semester as a way to get internship experience without missing football? That could be quite helpful to do around Junior year. Based on the football schedule, it sounds like that would be best in spring semester?
Not CS, but wonder if they would be flexible: Internships And Co-Op Experiences : ECE FLORIDA
Wouldn’t work with a DivI football schedule. He’d have to quit football (which is what I intimated early).
I suppose he could look to land something (co-op or internship) the term right after the fall season that he hangs up the cleats. His school should provide a ton of career and academic support to football players. I’d have him work with academic/support staff to make that happen.
Those sites are good. Searching Amazon books on code test / technical interviewing could be useful. There are really important things looked for in such interviews. The first is technical competence - can you write the code on the spot and have it work? But before that, the interviewee needs to demonstrate ability plan what is to be done. For instance, if the interviewer presents a problem what you do not want to do is dive into writing code. Instead the interviewee should follow a process something like this (off the top of my head, not complete)…
Along the way engage in conversation on the problem and solution, other possible solutions and why yours is the best. Most good technical interview resources will cove this in more detail and discuss options for what to do if you know the concept of a solution but not how to implement, or even the case where you have no clue what the solution is (hint - most interviewers will help to some degree so all is not lost).
I’m not sure if there exists a back-door to interviews at the more highly desires employers, but there may be. Without relevant experience recruiters may not reach out based on a LinkedIn profile. Applying online is do-able, but a better path may be recruiter days on your campus. Employers will typically hold first pass code tests on campus that may get your foot in the door.
This is far more important than what most, especially new grads, appreciate. Referred candidates have something like a 4 fold chance over cold candidates.
The best part is that it is surprisingly easy to score referrals. No need to shmooze with the Directors and VPs - your friends who just recently graduated will do fine as well. A lot of the campus teams (the people who come to your campus for on-campus recruiting) are made up of a lot of early career talent, and they can have a lot of pull.
What I meant was I’m not sure if there is a side door that bypasses the code test interviews. Getting a referral is a great way to get an interview but there remains several code tests of sometimes increasing difficulty.
Ah - I don’t think there is a reliable way to avoid them (unless you avoid companies that use them, which probably limits high-compensation opportunities).
That depends entirely on the strength of referral. There are some, and admittedly they’re rarer and usually only germane after work experience, but they exist where that trivia/coding process and occasionally the whole interview is bypassed.
Not generally, especially for college applicants, at an employer where technical questions are a standard part (not necessarily all) of the interview for technical roles.
Some great advice and ideas everyone. I appreciate the help/input!