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Ask HN: Job Hopping?

4 points by mpg33 ↗ HN
I am a recent graduate that has been in development job for the last 4 months. During school i had some internships at a company that involved software QA which i enjoyed. I now may have an opportunity to return to that company full time.

How bad would it look to future employers if i left my first job real full time job after 4 months?

6 comments

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rorrr
Nobody gives a shit, it's completely normal in IT. I spent more than 5 years at my first job, and I now regret it. Every job after that lasted a year to two years, and your salary grows so much quicker when you switch.

If somebody asks you why you left the job, just tell them the truth.

mpg33
but do you think the fact that you spent 5 years at your first job helped you get others?
djloche
Interview and see what they offer. There is no shame in moving up to a higher paying job when opportunity strikes.
kellco
I think you should do something you enjoy and love. Life is too short, but then again, I'm not one to ask regarding traditional "jobs" and job longevity. Ha!
djb_hackernews
Probably after a year at the other company I'd stop even putting that 4 month gig on my resume.

This is sort of a no brainer.

bartonfink
Is this new opportunity for QA or for development? It's not clear from your post, and that's a point worth considering.

If you want to do software development, a QA role will make things more difficult down the road when you're looking for a development job. It's very easy to get typecast in this industry, and the leap from QA to development is a difficult one.

Assuming the new job would be for a role you're interested in, I don't see the harm in switching at all. The rule of thumb I've heard is that you should try to stick at each job for roughly 2 years, but that rule's easier to break when you're young and just out of school than it is later on. This could be very easy to explain to future employers, so I wouldn't worry about them at all.