Ask HN: Getting a CS job in a country other than the US | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: Getting a CS job in a country other than the US

7 pointsdanejensen9 comments

I'm a graduating math major who is pretty proficient at a lot of languages. I want to travel for a while before I decide if I will go to grad school or start a start-up. I was wondering if anyone had any advice about finding CS job in another country.

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I encourage folks to consider the global market for their talents -- that's how I ended up behind a desk in Nagoya. That being said, I have previously found that people who self-describe as "pretty proficient at a lot of languages" are inclined to describe "I can comfortably order a meal and ask directions to the nearest park" as proficiency. They do not always respond so well to being shown a design document and asked to spot the bug.

(God save me from having to interview one more person who thinks "I have watched subbed anime. Booyah!" counts as Japanese proficiency.)

Damn, I had to re-read this a couple of times. When the OP said "pretty proficient at a lot of languages", I mistakenly thought he meant programming languages =]

Rule out the EU & Switzerland if you have US citizenship. It's nearly impossible to get something in Europe if you're not an EU citizen.

I would say, depending on your finances, travel and look. Find the country/culture that matches your personality best and start asking around there.

Come to Australia. =) From my experience (before recession & before my startups), it's not hard to find an IT job as long as you know your stuff. Most employers are willing to support you for permanent residency.

Join a start-up in Bangalore, India.

It'll be a good experience for you. Since everybody speaks/understands English, you'll not feel out of place.

Get a few years of real experience before trying to find work abroad. CS degrees are irrelevant for most of the good jobs.

> CS degrees are irrelevant for most of the good jobs.

This is only true if you already have significant experience.

Are you a US Citizen? You could look for US Government jobs that have the work done in field locations.

Join CIA

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