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Programming as a side-job?

5 points by veddox ↗ HN
Summary: is it possible, as a student, to make money by programming during university? If so, what directions are open to me?

Perhaps I should briefly introduce myself - I am 19, finished with high school last year, did a gap year and will start with university in Germany this October, studying biology. (In Würzburg, with the aim of going into bioinformatics.) I am a hobby programmer, started with Java close on four years ago, and have since added Python, Common Lisp and a bit of C++. I can't really judge how good I am as a programmer, but I am starting to contribute to open source (currently, the Bazaar VCS).

Like just about all students, I will want to earn a bit of money by the side to see me through university. (There are no tuition fees in Germany, but living expenses need to be paid for.) I would love to be able to do this with programming - getting paid for my hobby seems pretty cool. But I don't know how realistic this is with my level of skill, and who would hire me just for the semester holidays - or can I go freelance? (For the latter option, I also don't know what legal things I'd have to watch out for in Germany.)

5 comments

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Nickersf
I'm in a similar situation. In the passed months I found some freelance web design work, and that was some nice side money. However, I've been looking at local job listings (Portland, Oregon) and part time positions are very limited. One thing to look out for is paid internships. I went to an interview for a junior developer position and didn't get the gig because of my school schedule. Now I'm shifting my search to target paid internships.

From my experience your best bet is, paid internships, and freelance work. This is a good question. Working in food service while studying computer science is hard on the spirit. Do you have a portfolio/github/codepen where people can see your work? If not, that will help get your foot in the door.

veddox
> Working in food service while studying computer science is hard on the spirit.

Been there, done that ;-)

Thanks for the paid internship hint, I'll have a look around for those. I have some of my slightly older projects up on Launchpad, and am looking to joining Github soon.

What freelance work would you recommend? App development, or custom software for businesses?

shakyor
Hi,

I am studying Computer Science in Würzburg ;)

It depends on your skillset, but actually its plenty easy in Würzburg and Germany in general to make SOME money. It off course depends on your expertise and requierments.

Although, i am the University for Applied Sciencs, and our Faculty has a real strong support network for getting students into various jobs. Cant speak for the University, and certainly not for the Faculty of Biology.

If you want I can give you some advice though :)

veddox
Oh, a fellow German :-)

By University for Applied Sciences, do you mean the Fachhochschule?

Would you know any companies in Würzburg and the surrounding area that I could apply to for a summer job?

shakyor
Yes i did :)

Actually its really easy to go freelance, for germany just go and inform urself an "Gewerbe anmelden". It is actually incredibly friendly :)

This way you can easily work whenver you have time, at hours and a location of ur choosing. Other than that, u can maybe ask the student body ("Fachschaft") of your Computer Science Department if the Univiersity has a similiar job market. These are some methods to get a steady supply.

To specifically answer you, on the top of my head, i recently was approached by: FlyerAlarm - One of the biggest OnlinePrintShops Garmin - One of the biggest Navigation Companies world wide. And one more i dont want to disclose since my girlfriend is applying for the job....sorry ^^

But i know there are lots more :)