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When to Leave That First Tech Job
An anonymous reader writes "Chris Wilson has an interesting piece about a scenario all CompSci/Engineering students dread, getting a job out of college and having it quickly turn sour. He writes: 'The first layoff is tough. After bending over backward, after being a loyal employee, this is the reward? To summarize how I felt: Disillusioned.' He discusses warning signs you should look for in your own work environment that point toward "Getting out". An interesting read, especially for aspiring engineers or engineers out on their first job."
Well, this is probably going to come off as sounding idiotic, especially here on Slashdot, but it's been reccomended to me by many employees of HP (Parent works there as a Mech Engineer), and a couple in-town software companies that I should head into business. /.'ers care about Security, or do you all want to try switching around a lot? And I realise this is a pretty big generalization, so I welcome any input into the subject, especially those who are already in tech careers that are paying off right now.
Now, I'm by no means a smart cookie, I didn't even make it out of high school with a math higher than our final algebra class (read: not calc/pre-calc), so this may be a better choice for me than the general super geniuses we have running around here; but is the tech firm in a decline? I keep on reading that a company can hire an Indian programmer for less than a US one and still get equal or better results. Same goes with EE's, ME's, and tech support (besides the accents, Dell decided to keep some call centers in the US due to customers not being able to understand them, IIRC).
So, my question is this: With all the layoffs that keep coming at most tech firms, is it a good idea to get involved with a degree that may only last one a decade or so? Or do the majority of you predict this is as bad as it's getting, and the US tech firm biz has been getting better?
It doesn't really matter to me, I suppose- I wouldn't stand a chance at most jobs Slashdotters want to get into; heck, I'm thinking of taking up a career at McDonalds, if my current job proves to be something that I would like to do. (They offer a thing where they can actually pay for my schooling, as long as I decide to stay in the company, et al.) And while many will scoff, I know that there will always be a job there for me. And apparently it's not too hard to move up into corporate after you've had enough experience in the restraunt.
I guess it simply comes down to job security for me. Do the majority of