Employment history

Auburn

I need some c.v. advice please.

I'm finishing college soon with a computer science degree. The jobs i will be applying for afterwards will be technical support/call centre-type jobs.

The thing is: the only relevant work experience I have is my co-op job. I have had other part-time jobs but they're unrelated to my career, like supermarkets, a book shop, etc.

What I'm wondering is: is it ok to leave these (irrelevant) jobs out of my c.v.? They will not be of any interest to prospective employers. I could fill up the c.v. with information about projects I have worked on in college and my skills & knowledge. Or, should they be left in to show that i have experience in working with customers?

Borzoi

Leave em in. several reasons

It shows that you've got off your arse
Some might indicate that you have peope skills or can be trusted with money/responsibility.
Gives the interviewer something to ask you about, remember they've just gone through a hoard of grads with very similar qualifications, anything to make them look at you especially.

Don't go into huge depth on your projects on the CV, that again is what the interview is for.

BTW with a Comp Sci degree you might want to set your sights above call centre work, or is the market that bad these days?

eth0_

Originally posted by Borzoi

BTW with a Comp Sci degree you might want to set your sights above call centre work, or is the market that bad these days?

Everyone and their dog seem to have comp sci degrees, so it's very hard to walk into a decent IT job after college. An awful lot of people start off in support work, it's usually good experience.

leeroybrown

Leave them in but don't waste too much space with them. If you don't have much relevant work experience then at least having multiple jobs listed proves you have worked at and stayed in jobs.

Peace

Originally posted by eth0_
Everyone and their dog seem to have comp sci degrees, so it's very hard to walk into a decent IT job after college. An awful lot of people start off in support work, it's usually good experience.

I did a year of support back in 1st/2nd year of college...It can get soul destroying real fast. Try to get something thats not on a phone all day... maybe system admin?

Also the market seems to be picking up slowly so the demand for Comp Sci grads will increase over the next year or so.... so don't go burning the degree just yet.

I should mention i'm in the same boat as you... will be finished my degree in a week!

RicardoSmith

I'd say when you don't have much relevent experience you should leave a couple other places you've worked on your CV. It shows that you have some level of maturity and professionalisim to hold down a job. When you've a bit of relevent experience under you belt you can drop of the other stuff.

seamus

I had a supermarket down on mine for Tech Jobs.

If they were significant to you, then you should probably leave them in. It gives a potential employer and idea of where you've come from in terms of working with others, customer service, responsibility etc. Technical Skill and qualifications are only part of what employers look at.

There's no point in hiring someone for tech support, if they're crap at customer services. There's no point in hiring a brilliant programmer for a team if he doesn't work well with people. These are the things that stand to you, and could be a deciding factor on whether you get a job.

As you get more experience though, obviously they are the first on the chopping block.

Auburn

Thanks to everyone for the feedback
I think that at least it will show that I was able to hold down jobs, that I have people skills and can handle responsibility. I just needed an informed opinion.

Originally posted by Borzoi
BTW with a Comp Sci degree you might want to set your sights above call centre work, or is the market that bad these days?

The market does seem to be that bad, unfortunately. I'm thinking of doing it for a year or so and during that time I will work at getting some certification like the MCSE, etc. to improve my future prospects.

Originally posted by Peace
Try to get something thats not on a phone all day... maybe system admin?

That's the eventual plan, but any jobs I'm interested in are looking for people with experience and/or extra qualifications.:mad:

RicardoSmith

Originally posted by Auburn
....The market does seem to be that bad, unfortunately. I'm thinking of doing it for a year or so and during that time I will work at getting some certification like the MCSE, etc. to improve my future prospects....That's the eventual plan, but any jobs I'm interested in are looking for people with experience and/or extra qualifications.:mad:

That seems to be my experience at the moment now too. Most places are looking for 3yrs min and 5yrs normally for any development job. The alternatives seem to be do support for peanuts. I'm looking at doing certifications too.