How to Land a Killer Job at a Tech Startup Out of College

I'm going to add to that:

If you haven't started programming before you finish college, you've waited too long. The people that work well at startups are self-motivated and want to get things done. That means they spent at least some of their free time making something cool and (at least to themselves) useful. Or fun. Or both.

In my experience, it's easier to land a startup job straight out of college than a BigCo job. BigCo's look for X years experience, formal certifications, references etc. Startups look for enthusiasm, ability and a personal connection -- something you should have plenty of coming out of college.

I think #8 (BE YOURSELF) should really be the first thing on the list. As someone who is now working at a startup straight out of [a really random, lesser well-known, liberal-arts focused] college, the single most important thing is to see how well you connect with the team.

People are really the most important part of any startup in my opinion. Don't try to be someone else. If there isn't a fit, you shouldn't try to force one.