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Comments: 103 +- Developers: How To List FOSS Experience On Your Resume on Saturday October 17, @07:16PM
Posted
by
kdawson
on Saturday October 17, @07:16PM
from the one-page-and-make-it-good dept.
from the one-page-and-make-it-good dept.
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programming
maximus1 writes "If you're selling skills gained in an open source project, you have additional opportunities to shine, say experts in this ITWorld article. But what is the best way to explain your FOSS experience? 'Someone stands out because of how they talk about the project, says Zack Grossbart, author of The One Minute Commute. His advice is to describe the project and discuss your contributions in detail: 'If you were a committer, what did you do to earn that status? What features did you work on? Did you design new areas, or just implement predefined functions? Did you lead meetings? Define new architecture? Set the project direction?' If the FOSS experience is part of your background but not a shining beacon or job equivalent, it's common to list it under 'other experience.' Andy Lester, author of Land The Tech Job You Love, says: 'Think of each project as a freelance job that you've worked on. Just as different freelance gigs have varying sizes and scopes, so too does each project to which you contribute. The key is to not lump all your projects under one "open source work" heading.' Good examples are worth a thousand words. Grossbart offers up his resume as a sound but not perfect example (PDF) that includes open source experience. (His article on how to format your resume might also be of interest.)"
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Open source. (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Open source. (Score:5, Informative)
Big problem is that the resume is filtered by data mining software and HR types. Anything outside of standard keywords and job description might not make the cut to an interview. At interview is where you show them what you have done unless they have a specific style of Q&A.
Parent
Re:Open source. (Score:5, Interesting)
elevate the resume line from 'releasing free code as a hobby' to "research" work
And it's exactly this kind of thing that makes honest resumés look like shit.
OTOH, if the software in question is good enough, you don't need to lie. "I have 14 lines of code in the Linux kernel" is more impressive than "coded an OS from scratch".
Parent
Re:Open source. (Score:5, Funny)
And it's exactly this kind of thing that makes honest resumés look like shit.
OTOH, if the software in question is good enough, you don't need to lie. "I have 14 lines of code in the Linux kernel" is more impressive than "coded an OS from scratch".
Unfortunately, all 14 lines of code are simply comments...
Parent
Re: (Score:2)
On the other hand, they are famous comments [wordpress.com]. That's got to be worth something at that new government job.
Re:Open source. (Score:4, Funny)
And in the diff, they all begin with -
Parent
Re: (Score:2, Insightful)
There's nothing even close to dishonest here. If your code was so meaningless to you that you don't care to do the extra work to get it into a better category than "hobby" or "coding in spare time", then you deserve what you get.
Yes, i'm suggesting that if you want optimal resume lines, you adjust the type of FOSS development you do, than you otherwise would, and do a little more work.
14 lines in the Linux kernel is not an accomplishment that is the least bit indicative of a good developer; the hiring
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Coded an OS from scratch is comparatively much more interesting,
Not really. I think you're forgetting the level of quality required for any code to make it into the main branch, much less stay there. Being able to read and change other people's code is also a big plus.
You want to be able to say something like Wrote the USB Driver for a major operating system, not "fixed a bug in the Linux coffee pot power control driver".
14 lines of code that thousands of people use regularly is more valuable than something big noone ever heard of.
Re: (Score:2)
Because they are PHBs. They are not interested in what you actually did (and couldn't understand it anyway).
profit ! (Score:4, Funny)
step 1: get your resume posted on /. front page
step 2: ???
step 3: PROFIT !!!
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
> Please tell us so we know what we're getting.
You are getting what you see. Are you incapable of judging it on its merits?
"Meetings"? (Score:5, Insightful)
> Did you lead meetings?
What are these "meetings" you speak of?
Re:"Meetings"? (Score:5, Funny)
> Did you lead meetings?
What are these "meetings" you speak of?
It like a mailing list flamewar but not as fun to watch.
Parent
Re:"Meetings"? (Score:4, Insightful)
If you're putting together a resume then you're looking for a job, and if you get a job, you're going to have to endure brain numbing meetings where your boss will ask you the same question you've answered at least 3 times that much, knowing full well that he won't understand and will ask you again in a few days. The meeting will waste your time, and not express any information you couldn't have committed to writing in an email. But it will pass an hour of your - and more importantly, your bosses - time, and given that bosses don't work but instead just attend meetings and try and make comments to suggest that they in some way add value to the company they work for, you'd better get used to it sooner rather than later.
Parent
Re: (Score:2)
> ...you're going to have to endure brain numbing meetings where your boss will
> ask you...
The summary speaks of "meetings" in the context of Free Software development. Does not compute.
> ...you'd better get used to it sooner rather than later.
Oh, I spent many hours in meetings (I even "led" some). But that was long ago and far away, and definitely had nothing to do with Free Software.
Re:"Meetings"? (Score:5, Informative)
Oh, I spent many hours in meetings (I even "led" some). But that was long ago and far away, and definitely had nothing to do with Free Software.
I am currently working on a open source project and do have conference calls from time to time. Please try to not make such overreaching statements.
Parent
Re:"Meetings"? (Score:5, Interesting)
Parent
His formatting article might be interesting, (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:His formatting article might be interesting, (Score:5, Insightful)
Aside for the formatting of skill lists and stuff, its pretty good, which means one thing, in my opinion: he is another victim of the "YOUR RESUME MUST BE ONE PAGE REGARDLESS OF YOUR EXPERIENCE!!!!!111!" school of thought.
The one page resume rule: hurting professionals everywhere since....well, ever.
Parent
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
Aside for the formatting of skill lists and stuff, its pretty good, which means one thing, in my opinion: he is another victim of the "YOUR RESUME MUST BE ONE PAGE REGARDLESS OF YOUR EXPERIENCE!!!!!111!" school of thought.
The one page resume rule: hurting professionals everywhere since....well, ever.
if i had mod points i'd mod this +1 Insightful also. I've had an increasingly-long resume as I have moved up in my career. It started out as one of those "fit it in one page" jobs which makes sense when you are starting your career. People who have no experience, should not have a long resume. But if you've had any sort of career (which this Grossbart fellow seems to have had) it's right and proper to give adequate space to explaining what you did in these jobs, and highlighting your successes over that tim
Re:His formatting article might be interesting, (Score:4, Insightful)
Perhaps a better way to express it is: Your resume can be as long as you think is necessary to describe your experience. But you should be aware that very few hiring managers will read past the first page. So the first page should list the experiences that you would like managers to know about when they're deciding whether to hire you.
The rest of your resume may be read (or skimmed) by lower-level managers (and your friends), and it may be searched for keywords by HR's software, but it usually won't contribute significantly to any hiring decisions.
This may all be disregarded if you know that the company's hiring managers are intelligent and knowledgeable in the company's field. Such people do tend to read entire resumes, and even understand them. This mostly applies to the smallest companies, since in large companies hiring is done by professional managers, not by people knowledgeable in their subject area.
Parent
Hiring managers & HR pros are different audien (Score:3, Interesting)
I think most hiring managers will read past the first page... assuming that they didn't get 100 resumes in response to a single job ad. But in a lot of companies, HR people exist to eliminate candidates more than they work to find the right ones. So they perform a kind of triage, looking for the reasons to dump your resume immediately (which I wrote about at Javaworld in How to Make HR Dump A Programmer's Resume [javaworld.com] and they are attracted by some strangely shiny things like keywords What HR Professionals Look F [javaworld.com]
Re:His formatting article might be interesting, (Score:4, Insightful)
I agree that one page isn't enough for people with lots of experience, but his solution is not the best to address this either. --WAY-- too much to read.
Note. I actually see the reason for keeping resumes under one page; most people that think they need two usually don't. I think it's only appropriate if the position is really important, since the pool for those positions are smaller and, thus, those who make the hiring decisions can (and will) spend more time on the person's merits and personality.
The methodology my school uses for resume writing is that people should list three key responsibilites for each job listing, in list format. This can make keeping a resume within to a single page even more difficult because many people have had numerous interesting experiences at their previous workplaces that may or may not be able to get listed on there. Then again, if that person does claim to have many of those experiences, they should be able to list a few which will grab an employer's attention fairly quickly.
After hearing of several interviews in my co-ops and speaking to a few managers about this, the logic behind this makes a lot of sense. Even though HR uses a bland filter to separate the "wheat" from the "chaff" (or, more appropriately, the ones who know the system and the ones who don't), those resumes still need to be passed down to management, as the decision is ultimately up to them. What this means is that they look at TONS of resumes, sometimes on a daily basis. Most of those resumes are ill-formatted, poorly written and are eyesores to look at. Additionally, they usually want to spend less than a minute looking at one before deciding whether to yay or nay a second interview (the nays don't get saved; they get binned).
It's for this reason that having a resume in list format helps so much; hiring managers or others with decision power don't have to think as much when looking at one. They can sift through the list and see if they make the cut (for an interview, that is).
Parent
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
This talk of school and co-op make me think you're mostly talking about early career resume. Thats different. IT is a volatile job market, and aside for a few people who like to settle down early, many IT professional and software engineers will frequently bounce from job to job. By mid career, having 3, 5, or 10+ -significant- jobs on your resume isn't uncommon. Add additional -relevant- trainings and certifications, and relevent publications, and a consultant will need 3-5 pages even if they keep it to a
Re: (Score:2, Interesting)
This is why you should have a separate resume (which, as word, means "summary", i.e., of your CV) and CV. Your CV can be multiple pages or one one long HTML page or whatever. Make your resume one page and put a URL for where your CV can be found on the web.
Re:His formatting article might be interesting, (Score:5, Interesting)
A friend and I were co-workers in a company that went bust. We had almost the same job and almost the same experience. We both applied at the same company, and I got a call back and a job. He never got a call back. My new boss asked if I knew anyone else. I said, "Uh, Yes?" and told him about my friend. He never saw the resume. I got it for him and he hired my friend as well. HR was pissed at him for at least 2 years.
Parent
Re:His formatting article might be interesting, (Score:4, Funny)
HR is worthless...
Where I work, only HR is hiring...
Parent
Re:His formatting article might be interesting, (Score:5, Funny)
I hope you never accidentally open a book, you might go blind.
Parent
Re:His formatting article might be interesting, (Score:4, Insightful)
Parent
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
And some people have become millionaires on selling "How to become a millionaire" books.
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
He's actually a pretty good example of everything you shouldn't do with your Resume.
There's a lot to be said for being concise in your resume, and the first page is the one which gets the most attention. The problem is that this doesn't mean you should cram everything you have onto one page, since one unreadable page is worse than 20 you can actually parse properly.
The reason for a one page resume is that your resume will appear in a gigantic stack of other resumes. If you're really lucky it might be being
How to format? Is not it about CONTENT? (Score:4, Interesting)
Is not "worry about the content, not the presentation" the mantra around here? If we are supposed to follow that for the web-pages we produce, why should the resumes be different?
One's resume should be in XML [sourceforge.net], from which various other formats can be produced automatically (and consistently)...
Re:How to format? Is not it about CONTENT? (Score:4, Insightful)
> Is not "worry about the content, not the presentation" the mantra around
> here? If we are supposed to follow that for the web-pages we produce, why
> should the resumes be different?
Resumes have to get past HR drones and PHBs in order to reach anyone who can comprehend the content.
Parent
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
One's resume should be in XML, from which various other formats can be produced automatically (and consistently)...
It's an interesting gimmick, but not sure what purpose it'd have for anyone other than XML monkeys. The problem is that a resume is about presentation as much as it is about content.
Re: (Score:2)
Yes, knowledge ontologies are the new hype in companies anyway
Make a portfolio (Score:5, Interesting)
Make a portfolio of open source work you've done. Go in and extract code that you've written. Annotate it explaining what problem you were solving and why you chose the design you did, etc. Keep each section fairly short (a few hundred lines of code) and write an overall document linking up the various code excerpts, creating a narrative for them to follow. If you have planning/design documentation, etc feel free to show excerpts of that too. Even emails from mailing lists where you defused a potentially difficult situation is good. Finally, provide links to all the original projects that you've contributed to so they can see your contribution first hand.
After you have organized all that, put it up on a web page somewhere and put a link on your resume. Burn a few business card sized CDs and hand them out at interviews. Make sure to bring a few to each interview. I've found they are popular.
This has gotten me more than one job. I used to maintain my portfolio continuously on my web page, but I'm teaching now and have let it lapse. However, it's sometimes useful even outside the job searching venue.
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
Use big names (Score:2)
Uh easy... (Score:3, Insightful)
Press "enter" after one of your job bulletpoints to make a new list items. Type in your role on the project, the name of the project, then the dates during which you worked on it. Provide a short description of the work you did, and how it impacted the success of the project.
Done.
Why should I care about this douchebag's (Score:4, Insightful)
opinion? Blah blah blah, try 30 different fonts. Blah blah blah, try 20 different text editors. And HR will still want a copy in word format or plain text format, ignore any formatting, and keyword scan.
My resume is done in latex. Better font, better justification, better appearance.
Re: (Score:2)
My resume is done in latex. Better font, better justification, better appearance.
Mine too. What do you do when they request your resume in doc form?
I wonder if you can embed a pdf into a doc...
Stretching it (Score:2, Insightful)
Listing FOSS contributions outside of Other Experience can look like stretching, and is stretching unless it's either something you're spending, say, 20+ hours/week on, or you're applying for your first position out of school. If you're not, it's not really the kind of professional experience you want to showcase, is it?
Even if you're spending substantial time on a FOSS project, you still may not want to list it outside of Other Experience other than to explain what you have been doing in the time since you
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
You obviously do not have sufficient experience as either an employee or and employer.
It's easy, but (Score:2, Funny)
You are forced to put the GNU notice in your resume and provide a blood sample in a test tube so they can sequence your ADN.
as someone who does hiring... (Score:5, Informative)
1. only list relevant experience, if your applying for a DBA position i don't want to waste time reading about how you enjoy cake decorating.
2. put the good stuff first, i need to skim 100's of these resumes so having to read till page 10 isn't helping your chances that'll see your skills.
3. keep the format clean and easy to read, don't make my eye's bleed because your going in the bin after page one with pink curly fonts.
Why make this dificult? K.I.S.S. (Score:5, Informative)
Why would FOSS or volunteer work be any different than work you did for a pay check?
It goes on the Resume same as any other job. I treat them with the exactly the same.
I read about data miners and other such rubbish filtering out FOSS and such type work. Well that is complete and total non-sense. Your resume is a record of your experience and accomplishments plain and simple.
Hear is some advice.
DO NOT MAKE YOUR RESUME OVERLY COMPLICATED. You do not need 20 headings highlighting the different views of your career. K.I.S.S. Keep It Simple Stupid is the rule to follow. Spend your effort on making sure that each piece of experience is effectively presented through a well written resume.
I use this rule of thumb. I treat my resume/CV as a full time job for 1 week. I spend no less than 40 hours working on it before any potential employer will see it. That's nto for every employer. That's for each time I'm on the job market. In North America no more than 4 pages EVER. In other parts of the world they like to see as much as a page per year experience ( I know ridiculous ). So what if the agency filters it and puts into their format. Let them. You're bring fresh copies on PLAIN WHITE PAPER in B/W to the interview? Cause you should be slapped if you don't. Oh gee all of a sudden your resume stands out in the pile of identical resumes in the stack. Why? Because it is well formatted on quality WHITE paper.
I read a lot of resumes. A LOT. I toss almost all of the resumes that have pictures / fancy paper / more heft than a phone book into the bin before turning the first page.
------
Do NOT's
- Put your picture on the resume. You are not that good looking.
- Use colored paper. What are you 12?
- Use textured paper. Again are you 12?
- Use multiple fonts. Only use Helvetica. Why all printers have it and it looks clean and is easy to read.
- Leave half empty pages. All pages should have a solid balance of text. Half pages are tossed pages.
- Only use one recruiter. Where is there a law that states you can only use one recruiter?
- Forget to shave. Guys Gals, it applies to both of you. Clean looks get the jobs and more money. Don't care if it's racist / prejudice or what ever complaint you have. Clean looks always win. Grow the pRon mustache after you get the job OK.
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
You are so right... except for the font. Humans read a serif font about 20% faster and with less errors than a sans serif font so use Times instead of Helvetica (which btw. is not available on a std.Windows PC... Arial, Tahoma or Verdana are not good substitutes for Helvetica).
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Clean just improves the odds no matter the company. My self personally I like someone not afraid to self express. So I tend to take a liking to the ab-normal. Hell I drive a H.D. to work and sport the odd tat myself.
I was just speaking of the average. As you have probably experienced in your own life there is a degree of higher resistance to you and your chosen appearance. Are these people that give you the "slanted" look narrow minded and a bit backwards? You bet yah.
"Worth working for" is a lot diffe
Mistake in his resume (Score:3, Insightful)
I think he didn't list his FOSS experience very well. It says:
Sole engineer for the GoTD program (http://sourceforge.net/projects/mgatdirector), an open source program for directing Go tournaments. GoTD integrates registration, player pairing, handicapping,
conict resolution, and results reporting into one easy-to-use interface. GoTD is the rst and only open source program available for managing Go tournaments.
It sounds like he is selling the project, not himself. In my experience, you don't say what the project did, you say the technologies it uses and what YOU did. I might write:
Sole engineer for the GoTD program (http://sourceforge.net/projects/mgatdirector), an open source program for directing Go tournaments written in C++/Qt. Ran on Linux, Windows, and Commodore 64. Maintained project in source control via sourceforge. Prioritized bug reports, applied fixes, and determined new features. A forum was established to solicit feedback from customers.