Which job to take ?

Hi

I have just graduated from university with a degree in computer science and engineering.

I am in a dilemma to chose among the job offers I have:

I have two job offers at the moment and they are far apart.

option 1:
I am placed in a multinational company (medium sized )with around 1000 employees and an annual turn over of USD 2 crore and established 15 years ago.
It is a product development company with few established product in the domain of Business Process Management.
What I know now is that they do not do product development from scratch now and just modify and add additional functionalities to there product based on customer demands.
So they do both product development and service based work.

My work there would primarily be of software developer( in Java or C#) but they haven't specified whether they are going to keep me in product development team or the testing team. Moreover the profile may also require me to handle client queries and visit there.

Option 2:
It is a small company with just 50 employees and has been in existence for 10 years. They say that they recruit only the best to work for them and keep the team size small.
It is a Linux based web development company. They deal with UI suggestion for websites and web based development i.e. they are a service based company.
They are offering me nearly 50% more money than Option1.
I will start there as a Java developer as they said to me that it is the closest to my C++ expertise. But as far as I know they don't have many Java projects with them so I may have to switch to LAMP etc. in a few months probably.

Both companies are within my vicinity so relocation is not a factor.

The reason I am confused is that I haven't done any significant web development till now. But I have good experience of working with C++ and Java during my graduation.

Please advise.

Thanks

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Comments

UnixGuy

Both are Software development offers in languages like Java or C#

I think they're both good, and a great opportunity for you to learn and get a great deal of experience.

Compare the money, company stability of both companies. If you have friends working for any of these two, you can ask them.

Your main criteria is the projects you will be working with. Your main goal should be the experience, so choose the company where you will be working harder. It's all good, be it web development or application development.
(Personally I'd choose the LAMP, and C++ stuff if possible).

koolhead

UnixGuy wrote: »

Compare the money, company stability of both companies. If you have friends working for any of these two, you can ask them.

Your main criteria is the projects you will be working with. Your main goal should be the experience, so choose the company where you will be working harder. It's all good, be it web development or application development.
(Personally I'd choose the LAMP, and C++ stuff if possible).

What are the prospects of web development as a career (considering that I am more comfortable with C++) ?

The first option would require me to do client side handling, client query solving, code walkthrough, code writing, unit testing, adding functionalities as required by specific clients. (This is what they answered in response to details of my profile)

The second option, this company give UI suggestions for websites to make them better and also have some web application contracts (but the technology I will be working on will not be fixed - is it good ? )

Moreover, isn't java in both companies wouldn't be different ? What I perceive from web development is JSP, struts, Servlets etc.

In addition to this, I aim to be a core software developer in future.

Is this true that if you start in a product development company you get better future prospects as a core developer ?

UnixGuy

I don't really see an issue with either opportunity. Being comfortable with C++ it's easy to code in other language. You are starting your career, so any experience is good. It depends on the projects you will be handling and there's a room for luck there.

If in the first option you will be focusing on a certain type of programming, then go for it. Focus on it and get good experience, then you can move on to other things.

becoming a good developers you need to get your hands dirty and work on challenging projects - that will happen with time & dedication.

I see both opportunities are good and both will serve your long term goals.

koolhead wrote: »

What are the prospects of web development as a career (considering that I am more comfortable with C++) ?

The first option would require me to do client side handling, client query solving, code walkthrough, code writing, unit testing, adding functionalities as required by specific clients. (This is what they answered in response to details of my profile)

The second option, this company give UI suggestions for websites to make them better and also have some web application contracts (but the technology I will be working on will not be fixed - is it good ? )

Moreover, isn't java in both companies wouldn't be different ? What I perceive from web development is JSP, struts, Servlets etc.

In addition to this, I aim to be a core software developer in future.

Is this true that if you start in a product development company you get better future prospects as a core developer ?

koolhead

Thanks UnixGuy

I have a few more question.
If I join web development company ( small company so faster learning and more responsibilities)
and say after 1 or 1.5 years I apply for a software developer in C or C++ profile, so would my experience would be a hindrance ? Or I would be stuck to work for web development profile only for all my life ?

I am considering the scenario that say I apply for a C++ developer in some big MNC say MS, Google or Adobe. So do they look at what technologies I have worked on or do they look at how much I know on what I have worked upon ?

Most of the companies who came for placements in college tested how much you know what you know rather than the work that you are supposed to do.

UnixGuy

If C++ is your end goal then how about finding an opportunity to work with C++ now ?

if you can't find it, then take whatever job you have now and keep looking until you find the one you want.

I'd always go with the one with more responsibilities/fast learning.

companies who need C++ programmers they would like a developer with C++ programming experience. Companies like Google/Yahoo,..etc they look also for college education, so masters from a reputable university would help.

Companies who come to college they don't expect you to have real world experience, they just want to see if you understand your stuff and if you have the right mind/attitude to learn so it's different.

companies like Google and adobe they always demand developers be it web or stand alone applications. I say get the best opportunity you have in hand now, and keep looking for your dream job. No working few years in web development doesn't mean you have to be a web programmer all your life, you can change the programming experience will help and count.

koolhead wrote: »

Thanks UnixGuy

I have a few more question.
If I join web development company ( small company so faster learning and more responsibilities)
and say after 1 or 1.5 years I apply for a software developer in C or C++ profile, so would my experience would be a hindrance ? Or I would be stuck to work for web development profile only for all my life ?

I am considering the scenario that say I apply for a C++ developer in some big MNC say MS, Google or Adobe. So do they look at what technologies I have worked on or do they look at how much I know on what I have worked upon ?

Most of the companies who came for placements in college tested how much you know what you know rather than the work that you are supposed to do.