6 ms·

I'll work for them in a heartbeat. Seriously, I want to work somewhere where I'm never bored, and can take part in conversations, etc. It seems like a good plac

by ryanlm 10y ago

I'll work for them in a heartbeat. Seriously, I want to work somewhere where I'm never bored, and can take part in conversations, etc. It seems like a good place for an ambitious new grad for a few years. If there are any Amazon employees reading this, please reach out!

rattray 10y ago
> I want to work somewhere where I'm never bored, and can take part in conversations, etc. Try a startup?
- deegles 10y ago
  Anyone would be way more valuable to a startup after a couple of years in industry. I would say that Amazon more so than others (maybe a little biased..) because of the team structure, engineering tools and development practices. Knowing what I know now, if I had gone to a startup straight out of college I would have been worse than useless.
- pc86 10y ago
  At the risk of just repeating what deegles said, do startups really want the overhead of a new grad? I've met people 2-3 years out of school who can barely communicate or work in a professional environment. I can't imagine dealing with a new grad plus the faster-than-average-corporate environment of a startup.
  - brianwawok 10y ago
    Not as employee 1 or 2 or 3. Maybe by employee 5 or 6 you can afford 1 or so new guys. New guys are awesome, but a lot of work. Hard to justify them for a few years...
throwaway52584 10y ago
I'm picturing a wide-eyed lamb wandering into the lion's den. "Hai guys! Let's have conversations LOL."
- ryanlm 10y ago
  I meant design discussions, etc. Not just a code monkey. I'm sorry you think it is funny that I actually want to participate in the development process. Don't worry, at my current job, I know my place. I make sure not overstep bounds, etc. Also, maybe I haven't been an Enterprise Fizzbuzz Java Developer for 6 years, but I've been keeping busy by having personal projects that most enterprise developers would probably not be able to understand.
  - 1_2__3 10y ago
    Right, we know. Every new grad thinks it's going to be high-level design discussions. It won't be. You'll be a code monkey.
    - ryanlm 10y ago
      Who is "we"? Also why would it be a code monkey job?
  - khedoros 10y ago
    > I meant design discussions, etc. I think that was understood (at least, that's how I read it). In a good environment at any company, your ideas will be fairly weighed against other options. Most environments aren't "good", by that definition. Don't be surprised if ideas that don't support the status quo are thrown aside. > I'm sorry you think it is funny that I actually want to participate in the development process. They weren't making fun of you because you'd like to take part in the process. They were making fun of you because you think it would be that simple. > I've been keeping busy by having personal projects that most enterprise developers would probably not be able to understand. Condescending statements like this make me glad not to know you. I've done things that some of my coworkers don't understand, and they've sometimes done things that I never have. Personal projects are fine, but there's a difference between the short+sharp bits of brilliance that you might put in a personal project of a few thousand lines and introducing a major feature into a project that has a whole file for every line that your personal project has.
jgn 10y ago
I'd be happy to get you into the interview process, or at least point you in the right direction. My experience at Amazon has been great. I don't know anyone who cries at their desk, works 80 hours per week, or feels like they're being pushed through a meat grinder. I worked for Microsoft before Amazon, and that was brutal. You'll find bad teams at every large company. One of my friends was on one at Google.
- ohstopitu 10y ago
  I'd love to have a go at the interview process if it's possible. I had an interview process a while back (at the end of April I believe) but I don't know what went wrong - I kept getting calls from Amazon (Seattle number) claiming I had not done the test (which I had already done) and the HR folks mentioning I was not selected - and to try 6 months later. I would definitely like to have another go at it, if possible.
  - jgn 10y ago
    Shoot me an email. It's in my profile.
    - ryanlm 10y ago
      Not anymore :) I've gotten 3 emails from employees there after this thread. Mind if I ask you why you removed it?
- jwalker14 10y ago
  I'd take you up on that offer. I'd love to have a third crack at it. I've had two coding challenges within that last year. One for an internship and one for a full time position (earlier today no reply yet don't expect one). The problem for me is I freeze. As soon as the "testing" type pressure gets put on I go cold and freeze. Then as soon as the test is over I can pull alllllll the information forward. It sucks because I struggle with CS exams too. Every time I have a test I freeze until I'm out of time and as soon as I leave a room it all comes back.
brianwawok 10y ago
Yah so this is the age old problem. Big companies do really big thing. Google is literally changing the world. But if you get a job there, you are employee #145,231. Maybe if you work hard for 5 years you can rise to the rank of middle manager, and attend a meeting with someone that reports to the CEO, and maybe you can try to get a project you want done scheduled. More likely you will just do the work you are assigned until you quit. Now a startup is the opposite. Blank startup has no power to change anything. But within that startup, you have 100% voice. If you work really hard, in 5 years maybe your startup will be big and you can change the world. Or more likely, they will go under or get bought out and you have not changed the world.
- vgt 10y ago
  I found my experience at Google to be different. While you have your primary job, and that's what you are judged on, you are free to experiment, innovate, create, and so forth, and Google is very good at recognizing self-started impact and rewarding these folks with more opportunities.
- ryanlm 10y ago
  Is the age old problem mean I'm too young to be taken seriously in any context?
  - ssalazar 10y ago
    No, that the problem itself has been around a long time (at least since the late 70s PC boom).
  - brianwawok 10y ago
    Nothing about your age just a problem that isn't new.
jeffbarr 10y ago
Feel free to get in touch (email is in my HN profile) or to look at the AWS Careers page.
- ryanlm 10y ago
  Hey Jeff. Thanks so much. I think I'm in touch with your team now.

by ryanlm 10y ago

rattray 10y ago

> I want to work somewhere where I'm never bored, and can take part in conversations, etc. Try a startup?

deegles 10y ago
Anyone would be way more valuable to a startup after a couple of years in industry. I would say that Amazon more so than others (maybe a little biased..) because of the team structure, engineering tools and development practices. Knowing what I know now, if I had gone to a startup straight out of college I would have been worse than useless.
pc86 10y ago
At the risk of just repeating what deegles said, do startups really want the overhead of a new grad? I've met people 2-3 years out of school who can barely communicate or work in a professional environment. I can't imagine dealing with a new grad plus the faster-than-average-corporate environment of a startup.
- brianwawok 10y ago
  Not as employee 1 or 2 or 3. Maybe by employee 5 or 6 you can afford 1 or so new guys. New guys are awesome, but a lot of work. Hard to justify them for a few years...

throwaway52584 10y ago

I'm picturing a wide-eyed lamb wandering into the lion's den. "Hai guys! Let's have conversations LOL."

ryanlm 10y ago
I meant design discussions, etc. Not just a code monkey. I'm sorry you think it is funny that I actually want to participate in the development process. Don't worry, at my current job, I know my place. I make sure not overstep bounds, etc. Also, maybe I haven't been an Enterprise Fizzbuzz Java Developer for 6 years, but I've been keeping busy by having personal projects that most enterprise developers would probably not be able to understand.
- 1_2__3 10y ago
  Right, we know. Every new grad thinks it's going to be high-level design discussions. It won't be. You'll be a code monkey.
  - ryanlm 10y ago
    Who is "we"? Also why would it be a code monkey job?
- khedoros 10y ago
  > I meant design discussions, etc. I think that was understood (at least, that's how I read it). In a good environment at any company, your ideas will be fairly weighed against other options. Most environments aren't "good", by that definition. Don't be surprised if ideas that don't support the status quo are thrown aside. > I'm sorry you think it is funny that I actually want to participate in the development process. They weren't making fun of you because you'd like to take part in the process. They were making fun of you because you think it would be that simple. > I've been keeping busy by having personal projects that most enterprise developers would probably not be able to understand. Condescending statements like this make me glad not to know you. I've done things that some of my coworkers don't understand, and they've sometimes done things that I never have. Personal projects are fine, but there's a difference between the short+sharp bits of brilliance that you might put in a personal project of a few thousand lines and introducing a major feature into a project that has a whole file for every line that your personal project has.

jgn 10y ago

I'd be happy to get you into the interview process, or at least point you in the right direction. My experience at Amazon has been great. I don't know anyone who cries at their desk, works 80 hours per week, or feels like they're being pushed through a meat grinder. I worked for Microsoft before Amazon, and that was brutal. You'll find bad teams at every large company. One of my friends was on one at Google.

ohstopitu 10y ago
I'd love to have a go at the interview process if it's possible. I had an interview process a while back (at the end of April I believe) but I don't know what went wrong - I kept getting calls from Amazon (Seattle number) claiming I had not done the test (which I had already done) and the HR folks mentioning I was not selected - and to try 6 months later. I would definitely like to have another go at it, if possible.
- jgn 10y ago
  Shoot me an email. It's in my profile.
  - ryanlm 10y ago
    Not anymore :) I've gotten 3 emails from employees there after this thread. Mind if I ask you why you removed it?
jwalker14 10y ago
I'd take you up on that offer. I'd love to have a third crack at it. I've had two coding challenges within that last year. One for an internship and one for a full time position (earlier today no reply yet don't expect one). The problem for me is I freeze. As soon as the "testing" type pressure gets put on I go cold and freeze. Then as soon as the test is over I can pull alllllll the information forward. It sucks because I struggle with CS exams too. Every time I have a test I freeze until I'm out of time and as soon as I leave a room it all comes back.

brianwawok 10y ago

Yah so this is the age old problem. Big companies do really big thing. Google is literally changing the world. But if you get a job there, you are employee #145,231. Maybe if you work hard for 5 years you can rise to the rank of middle manager, and attend a meeting with someone that reports to the CEO, and maybe you can try to get a project you want done scheduled. More likely you will just do the work you are assigned until you quit. Now a startup is the opposite. Blank startup has no power to change anything. But within that startup, you have 100% voice. If you work really hard, in 5 years maybe your startup will be big and you can change the world. Or more likely, they will go under or get bought out and you have not changed the world.

vgt 10y ago
I found my experience at Google to be different. While you have your primary job, and that's what you are judged on, you are free to experiment, innovate, create, and so forth, and Google is very good at recognizing self-started impact and rewarding these folks with more opportunities.
ryanlm 10y ago
Is the age old problem mean I'm too young to be taken seriously in any context?
- ssalazar 10y ago
  No, that the problem itself has been around a long time (at least since the late 70s PC boom).
- brianwawok 10y ago
  Nothing about your age just a problem that isn't new.

jeffbarr 10y ago

Feel free to get in touch (email is in my HN profile) or to look at the AWS Careers page.

ryanlm 10y ago
Hey Jeff. Thanks so much. I think I'm in touch with your team now.