Programming experience on resumes?

[C@S7]

Hello, newbie here. I have a question for you all. How much education/experience would you say is needed in a particular programming language (or OS) to safely put it on your resume?
For example, I've taken a C programming course, and have the basics down quite well, but, how much would I be expected to know at an entry level job? Anyone have any ideas?

[gradedcheese]

In your case, I would suggest the phrase "familiar with C" rather than just putting "C" down on the resume. The entry-level job depends on the industry/area. In embedded systems land, for example, entry level C experience still implies that you understand memory management pretty well, understand things like bitmasking, endianness, pointer arithmetic, and have a pretty thorough grasp of data structures. In some other field/area, you may just need to know most of the syntax, pointers as they're taught in that first class, and basic data structures. When in doubt, I'd use 'familiar' though.

[morequarky]

This is a good question. I have often wanted to know this myself.

Is it possible to list some IT stuff and the 'experts' tell us what is needed for entry-level jobs?


All Entry Level::

Java
Network Admin
Ubuntu/Debian

[Vorian]

moved to cafe.

[PriceChild]

If you've been on a course, I'd just put the name of that down, can be no discrepancies then?

[ComplexNumber]

Hello, newbie here. I have a question for you all. How much education/experience would you say is needed in a particular programming language (or OS) to safely put it on your resume?
For example, I've taken a C programming course, and have the basics down quite well, but, how much would I be expected to know at an entry level job? Anyone have any ideas?
i would put it straight down whether its 2 weeks experience or 10 years. if the employer is interested in you, they can find out the details in the interview.
a CV is all about selling yourself and putting yourself in the best possible light, but WITHOUT lying (for example, don't say that you have 10 years when you only have 2 weeks. IMO its ok to say "well versed in C" if you feel that you are. thats not lying, but its putting the best angle on it). so just don't say anything on your CV about your level of experience, but just mention that you have experience with C.
i've been taken on using a programming language i'd never even used before (they knew that beforehand). a lot of it is not so much what you know, as how well they think you can fit in.

[Somenoob]

I just read programming books because the educational institutions here only teach C#, and i'm only interested in Python and C.

[boredandblogging.com]

Sounds like you are looking for your first post-college job. I would put C on the resume, but employers have different levels of expectations. Most employers of entry-level positions just expect you to know some basics and be able to learn on the job (they can figure this out during the interview). You'll learn a lot more working than in school. At least, thats been my experience.

[saulgoode]

I categorize my experience with various languages as follows:

EXPERTISE WITH ... -- This means I consider myself as capable as anyone else might be with the language. I might need to turn to an API or reference manual to check syntax or parameter options, but I understand fully the principles and implementation of the language.

WORKING KNOWLEDGE OF ... -- I could start programming right away and be productive. There might be some gaps in my knowledgebase which might require a little further research on my part but I am comfortable with the majority of language's functionality.

FAMILIARITY WITH ... -- I have more than just an introductory level of knowledge with the language and could, for the most part, understand others' code and write some of my own. But there might be areas of the language's functionality which might require some more in-depth education on my part.

[runningwithscissors]

All this 'familiar with' stuff is <snip> rubbish.
You're supposed to pimp your skills. So if you're confident that you can hold your own in an entry level technical interview in C, by all means list it as something you know.

But yes, you need to know at least memory management and pointer arithmetic well enough even for an entry-level position.