Re: Career Progress

On Sat, 8 Mar 2008, ken Foskey <[email protected]> wrote:
> On Sat, 2008-03-08 at 02:46 +1100, Serdar Sahin wrote:
> > 2-) I am thinking to get LPI certificates, then maybe Linux+, but RHCE
> > is the last option since this is a bit expensive.  Is LPI enough or
> > should I focus on others too?
>
> LPI is really comprehensive.  Doing this yourself shows a lot of
> commitment, if company is redhat then offer to do RHCE at your expense
> when hired.

Also remember that you only have to pay for the exam, not the training 
courses. If cost is still an issue, you can go for an RHCT instead.

> > 3-) I look to the job ads, most of them say "excellent communication
> > skills". Does it mean native or native-like? I don't have perfect
> > English skills. Does it that much matter for a technical guy?
>
> Everyone wants perfect english,  most will accept a good enough english.
> Client facing jobs you have to be clear in what you say but not 'accent
> free'.  If your ability is above par technically then you can be
> forgiven other things,  you have to be able to prove it though.  A two
> page program is not a business application.

Given the poor standard of English literacy of many people (_especially_ 
amongst locals, it would seem) in this country (fortunately not nearly as bad 
in the FOSS community), "excellent communication skills" isn't nearly as 
restrictive as it may sound.

> > 4-) There are not lots of web server management job ads. I think this
> > is because Aussies use American websites, there are not lots of
> > websites for only Aussies. Should I improve my other skills? If so,
> > for which products or services?
>
> Scripting and administration is a booming industry here.

Relatively few Web sites are hosted locally, mainly due to the high cost of 
bandwidth here. Australian companies still need Web sites and Web services, 
though, and the wonders of the Internet mean that servers don't have to be 
housed inside the country.

> > 5-) I have not used Unix servers out of my home, so I don't have
> > experience on it. Every job ads about Unix wants at least 2 years Unix
> > experience. Do you think that whether they accept Linux experience as
> > Unix experience or not?
>
> Business experience on Linux yes, but you will loose out to someone with
> direct experience on the platform they want.

You can always download a copy of *BSD or Solaris/OpenSolaris and run it 
inside a virtual machine for practising.

> > 6-) Is getting Linux jobs hard in Sydney? How about other cities? The
> > salaries seem low for Australia, do you know why?
>
> Advertised jobs are the ones they want to fill cheap.  Take the low paid
> job, get the runs on the board and then network for a new better paid
> job.  Friends get more good jobs than newspapers.

+1

Friends and contacts are better than anything. Join Linux Australia, join a 
LUG, get on their mailing lists. Get to know people, make friends.

Linux Australia and some LUGs also have their own jobs mailing lists: 
http://www.slug.org.au/jobs

I wrote this for SLUG, but a lot of it could apply to any LUG: 
http://www.slug.org.au/participation

> > In shortly, I don't want to start from the very beginning. I would
> > like to use my skills. What should I do before I finish the school?
>
> Open source is a very good option.  Fix some problems in something like
> rhythmbox, start with simple ones and then migrate up.  Gives you
> something concrete to show an employer and it is like working in a piece
> of business code.

Yep. Getting involved in FOSS and doing good work is a great way to gain 
recognition and build your skills.



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