Philip Mullins ⋅ Richmond, TX IBM ⋅ 40 years experience

I’ll try! Reach out to me at philip.mullins@ibm.com

Joe Engle ⋅ Indianapolis, IN Electrical/Software Eng. + MBA ⋅ 30 years experience

Hello Wesley.
It looks like you have done a good job learning sw on your own. In addition to this, I would suggest getting a couple certifications for the languages or IT fields you are interested in (e.g. java and SQL). The certs would help demonstrate your capabilities to a hiring manager. Not absolutely necessary, but increases your chances.

Realistically, without actual experience you should target an entry level developer position. This is really not a disadvantage for you, as it gets your foot in the door, gets you experience, and the pay is good. Stay at the job a few years learning, and proving your capabilities, and making some networking contacts. Feel free to move on after that.

Are you prepared to move? I checked Indeed.com, and there are not many positions around Lufkin TX. There are a few. If you do apply for positions in a small town, it helps your chances of getting a job (the big fish in the small pond idea).

It might be best, and easier, to revisit your goal of doing sw dev to improve the world, after gaining some experience.

Thanks for your service Wesley and good luck!

ACP AdvisorNet Staff ⋅ New York, NY ⋅ 10 years experience

Hi Wesley,

Thank you for your question!

You may find it helpful to take a look at our “Community” tab, if you have not done so already. From there, you could click on the “Advisors” section. You could then filter by industry, experience level or location to directly message advisors and ask them specific questions that you have related to moving into the tech space.

I hope this helps!

Best,
Alex

Richard Byrne ⋅ Hillsborough, NJ Intel Corporation ⋅ 53 years experience

I've added links to information & videos under these sections of my EE webpage that might be useful to you:
http://eehot.com/ee.html#networking - 1 year LinkedIn Premium Free
http://eehot.com/ee.html#mentoring - traverse BLS.gov
http://eehot.com/ee.html#resumes

http://eehot.com/ee.html#languages
http://eehot.com/ee.html#datascience
http://eehot.com/ee.html#infosec
http://eehot.com/ee.html#ai
http://eehot.com/ee.html#pm

http://eehot.com/ee.html#jobs - commercial job searches
http://eehot.com/ee.html#gjobs - F Gov jobs
http://eehot.com/ee.html#training

http://eehot.com/ee.html#va - see VRRAP, GI Bill & education.

Navigate BLS.gov to find a dream career examining salaries & no. of positions.
Use keywords to do job searches.
Examine requirements in job openings, supplement training as necessary.

Commercial "SQL" entry level job search your location (3 jobs found)
https://www.indeed.com/jobs?q=Sql&l=Lufkin%2C%20TX&sc=0kf%3Aexplvl(ENTRY_LEVEL)%3B&vjk=2ecb830031f1ba34

Commercial "mongoDB" entry level job search Texas (124 jobs found)
https://www.indeed.com/jobs?q=mongoDB&l=Texas&sc=0kf%3Aexplvl(ENTRY_LEVEL)%3B&vjk=e1aa9ba8a2a13cc7

Commercial "Information Technology" entry level job search your location (17 jobs found)
https://www.indeed.com/jobs?q=Information%20Technology&l=Lufkin%2C%20TX&sc=0kf%3Aexplvl(ENTRY_LEVEL)%3B&vjk=06d1848c1f77cc02

Fed Gov search "Intelligence Analyst" location unspecified (57 jobs found)
https://www.usajobs.gov/Search/Results?k=Intelligence%20analyst