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Ask HN: Any jobs that fit my background? In dire straits

11 points by abbadadda ↗ HN
I apologize for inquiring about job openings this way. I was laid off yesterday, I have not yet been paid for April 2019, and I will not be getting any severance. I'm in a pretty dire situation financially, detailed in the link at the bottom, so I'm tossing a hail mary.

Broadly speaking, I'm looking for a role where I can work with Python and where I can combine computer science and data analytics to solve interesting problems. I also have experience with Django, PostgreSQL, JavaScript, HTML, CSS, Linux, AWS, ETL Flows, NVD3.js, Nginx, and Airflow.

I have a phone interview upcoming for SWE at Google but I am not super optimistic about this as I do not have formal CS training and I do not see myself as a full-fledged SWE. I am kind of in-betweener: not full data science, not full SWE, not a product manager, but pretty okay at all of these. I also founded an LLC and I have a web app that I created but this is nowhere near profitability and thus I am abandoning it for my job search.

If anyone on HN has any job search advice please let me know. If you know of any interesting job openings please let me know and I can send over my CV.

I'm in NYC at the moment but I'm open to working anywhere and can I start ASAP.

Thanks.

https://money.stackexchange.com/q/108689/73663

16 comments

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mimixco
Describing yourself as an in-betweener isn't appealing to a hiring manager. Could the solution be to specialize in something and get really good at it?

I know you need a job right now. I feel ya. But maybe better skills would help you get a better job next time.

abbadadda
I hear ya @mimixco. Just trying to be up front. I am highly specialized but possibly too specialized. My speciality is HFT Trading Operations but I'd love to get out. I have been working towards specialization in SWE over the past 2 years or so. However, in performing that job it has been difficult to specialize in SWE as the job demanded a bit Data Science and Product Management in addition to HFT duties. But I totally understand what you're saying.
troycarlson
Apply for Data Engineer positions?
abbadadda
Yeah great call. Do you know of any good courses to firm up data engineer skills? My training is not exactly formal in this area. Do you know of the most in demand skills for data engineering? Hadoop? Spark? Kinesis? Anything like that?
otras
I'd highly recommend looking through the monthly Who is hiring? threads, especially if you're more interested in startups. Here's the one from May 1st, and from a quick control-f through it looks like there are many postings for New York: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19797594
abbadadda
Excellent advice thanks. I'll have a gander and see if there are any roles that look like good fits.
gen220
Hey abbadadda, sorry to hear about your situation :(

Our company's building out a solid data science platform, and has a history of hiring people with your generalist SWE/Data background. I've no clue what our staffing quotas are for this year, but we're growing fast, so I imagine there are spots to fill.

I'm not on the data team, so I unfortunately can't give you a direct referral there, but if our recruiters (they're good) and hiring committee like what they see, you could probably be on-boarded within a few weeks.

Our pay's pretty competitive, and there's a lot of talented/eperienced people (xooglers, fb, bloomberg) here – check us out?

Wishing you the best of luck, here or anywhere.

https://www.hioscar.com/careers/21166 https://www.hioscar.com/careers/1173526

abbadadda
Thanks a lot gen220. Still sorting the mess out. I'll definitely check out those positions.
_1tan
Are you willing to move (Germany)?
abbadadda
Possibly! I used to live in the UK, and am still authorized to work there, but I'd require sponsorship in Germany.
atmosx
Beat has an opening for machine learning and data science positions. HQ locations are Amsterdam and Athens but remote is possible for the right candidate for certain positions. You could inquire to the team for more: https://thebeat.co/gr/careers/?intl=1
abbadadda
Thanks atmosx. I'll have a look and see if they are a good fit.
twunde
Hi abbadadda, Cedar is a healthcare startup based in NYC working to fix medical billing and use the Django stack. We're currently hiring for a number of positions. Our full-stack engineer JD is https://www.cedar.com/careers/view/?gh_jid=1566109 but its probably worth taking a look at the other positions as well.
abbadadda
Hey that sounds great. I'll check this out ASAP.
jasonog
Hi abbadadda, I'm the hiring manager at ZeroCater (YC W11) and we're looking to grow our team in both Austin as well as San Francisco. We use Django and PostgreSQL for all of our backends.

We don't care about formal education -- instead we care about can you deliver while making reasonable choices and try to skew our interviews in that direction.

Feel free to apply through https://grnh.se/38c432bf1 or you can reach out to me directly (contact info in profile).

I know losing a job can be stressful (it happened to me a month before getting married) and I hope you find a good spot to land.

abbadadda
Really grateful for the reply. Thank you. I'll be following up shortly.