<p>I am a September 2013 graduate of UC Irvine under the Computer Science major. I've been in search of an entry level IT job to no avail. From online submissions to headhunter registrations, from career fairs to networking events, I've spent many options with no success. I'm living at home(not in Irvine) right now, and my rightfully angry parents are pushing for going to grad school. Trouble is, my undergrad GPA was a 2.6, and I also don't really have a lot of savings to pay for living costs and the like. Is Grad School an option I should pursue at this point?</p>
<p>If I should choose to pursue it, I have learned that there are things called "non-matriculate" programs where I can sign up for courses without being a student at lower than usual tuition. Of course, there is the problem that this program requires upfront payment and is on a space-available basis. Having heard that getting good grades in these programs may fall in favor for future grad school applications, is this an advisable option as well?</p>
<p>You should consider getting out of the California market and getting some work experience first.</p>
<p>If you have a BS Computer Science and a Secret security clearance, you can easily find a job in the National Capital Region (MD/VA/DC) that pays well. It’s also not that hard to get a Secret security clearance. You could join the US Army Reserve or Army National Guard and pick a job where they will sponsor you for a Secret.</p>
<p>If you’re willing and able, a 2.5 GPA in Computer Science can easily do better financially than a 3.8 GPA in Underwater Basket weaving.</p>
<p>That may be a big part of your problem, not your GPA. Just checking, you don’t have your GPA on your resume, do you? Did you have any internships or CS related jobs to list on your resume?</p>
<p>Going to grad school will not solve the problem. You’ll be an overqualified, low GPA candidate. If your GPA is below 3.0, many CS companies wont take a risk. Additionally, not being a citizen for a security clearance has a lot to do with you’re not getting any offers. If you didn’t do an internship, then you’re stuck.</p>
<p>GPA isn’t listed on my resume, and never been asked for it at any past interviews. I just figured it’d be a factor against the grad school thing.
I do have 1.5 years internship experience developing flash presentations and doing website maintenance which I make sure to mention where I can. I find that I can get interviews if I apply through leads from headhunters, even if the same companies (e.g. Google, Apple) ignore my online applications. I just never seem to make it past the interview portion, technical or otherwise. In this world of suing over frivolous things, I can’t get feedback as to what I’m doing wrong at that point due to liability concerns.
As for the security clearance thing, is that something that isn’t explicitly mentioned in job postings? I’ve never heard of that requirement before. </p>
<p>Security clearance requirements are often mentioned for those jobs that require them, typically for jobs involving work on secret things for the military and the like. Most jobs in computing do not require security clearances.</p>
<p>However, if you are not a US citizen or permanent resident, some companies may not want the hassle of sponsoring you for a work visa.</p>
<p>Unless you can do much better in a recognized graduate program, going to graduate school would likely be a waste of money (it seems unlikely that you would get into a funded graduate program with a 2.6 GPA).</p>
<p>Some colleges allow students to use their career services for a while after they graduate. You may be able to get help with your interview skills. At my kids’ colleges, the career services offers help with resume formatting, does mock interviews and gives you feedback (some even will tape you and go over the video with you), etc. </p>
<p>I agree about the companies sponsoring you for a work visa situation, I suspect that is playing into this as well. Companies are a lot more likely to do that for someone with specialized knowledge that they want, not an intro level person.</p>
<p>Oh, sorry I didn’t make it clear; I’m not a US citizen, but I’m a permanent resident so I don’t need sponsorship or anything like that. I would make use of the career center but I’m not in Orange County so I can’t exactly drop in for counseling or mock interviews.
I need work to get money and experience, yet I need money and experience to get work. Part-time jobs think I’m overqualified with my college degree, yet I seem to be underqualified for entry level positions in my field, what few that exist. People say to network but all of the success stories talk about people luckily having family friends who were company CEO’s in their chosen field, which isn’t very realistic. I want to contribute to society, but society sets up so many barriers that sometimes I wonder if it’s worth it at all.</p>
<p>I’m sorry if I am griping, but I really am at the end of my rope.</p>
<p>If you are a permanent resident, you can enlist in the military and be given fast track towards naturlization, plus you will have a job, training for marketable post-military skills, and a security clearance when you come out. Seriously think about this option if nothing else is viable.</p>
<p>You would not want to go to a graduate program that would accept you. Go to a college counseling center (any college counseling center, but preferably a UC) and talk them into helping you. You graduated from UC, so it may be easier to get a UC to help you- though they can be territorial. Or have your understandably angry parents network some help for you to have some of their friends help you with the whole interview/presentation aspect. I think you may just need some coaching from mentors a few years older than you. Maybe it is as simple as dress/grooming, overexcitability/nervousness, ??. Hard to tell from a message board, but it is a place to start!</p>
<p>The only reason I bring up security clearances is because it’s one of the very few ways that a 2.x GPA Computer Science major can match the financial compensation of someone who is a CS genius working for Google, FB, Apple, etc. while having a excellent work/life balance.</p>
<p>OP, I was in a very similar situation to yours. I had a sub 3.0 GPA in BS Computer Science when I graduated undergrad, but I was a part time member of the National Guard. Finding well paying employment wasn’t hard at all with a Secret clearance. I didn’t even start looking for jobs until I graduated and I got an offer for ~80k/year (not including my annual military income), 6+ weeks of vacation, health benefits only God has access to, 35 hour work weeks as an entry level software engineer at a major defense contractor. I got an offer over a 30 min phone interview (not even an in-person interview!). Silicon valley tech companies, financial firms in NYC, etc. would have needed to guarantee me at least 160+k/year as an entry level software engineer to match the living standard I had then.</p>
<p>@Polo08816 , I am confused by your post. The OP isn’t asking to compete with folks who are at Google, FB, Apple, etc. Sounds like he wants ANY full time CS job. The people at the companies you mentioned aren’t probably even looking at the same jobs he is… I suppose a security clearance could be helpful at some companies, but usually the company pays for that process (which takes months sometimes) when they decide they want to hire you. The OP can’t just march off and get a security clearance on his own.</p>
<p>It is too bad for an IT major not to get a job in California. Have you tried going to Silicon Valley? Or if you are not afraid of thinking out of the box, going to China! Chinese tech companies are booming and IT majors get jobs easily. US tech firms, large or small, have offices in China, and Chinese tech firms are pushing hard into US too (e.g., Alibaba, Tencent, etc.). There are also a ton of IT startups growing like crazy. You can check out a website called china4future.com. </p>