CAREER ISSUES
IS 342
Chandra S. Amaravadi
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PRE-REQUISITES
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ANALYZE YOURSELF
DO YOU LIKE:
communications? coding?
working with people?
working individually?
working with numbers?
wrestling with problems?
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GETTING THE JOB
CHOOSE A CAREER PATH
Technical sales & support
Help desk; PC specialist
Systems analyst
Business analyst
Database analyst
Data warehouse analyst
IT analyst
Programmer analyst
Security analyst
Network analyst
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EXAMPLE JOB DESCRIPTIONS
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PC SPECIALIST
FBI, WASHINGTON D.C.
GS 7/9: Provides technical support concerning
implementation and daily operations of computer
systems and individual microcomputer functions within
a field office. In this capacity performs a variety of
duties, in support of users located through out the Field
Office, resident agencies and/or other off-site locations.
(40-58k)
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PC SPECIALIST
VOLT SERVICES
This position will be under the general
direction and supervision of the IT Area
Lead. The PC Systems Specialist will
perform analytical, technical and
administrative work in the planning,
configuration and installation of new and
existing PCs.
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BUSINESS ANALYST
UNITED HEALTH CARE, MINNEAPOLIS
Description:
Gathering and documenting business requirements. Conducting
business analysis. Collaborating with key customers and business
partners. Translating business requirements
Qualifications:
Significant experience as a business analyst is required.
Familiarity with the software development lifecycle is essential.
Experience with billing and invoicing systems is highly preferred.
Strong computer skills are a must.
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IT BUSINESS SYSTEMS ANALYST
JOB DESCRIPTION:
This candidate will maintain a thorough understanding of the
business and appropriate IS strategies. The focus will be
support of manufacturing related applications including
FACTORYworks, JDE One World Manufacturing and other
custom applications.
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DATABASE ANALYST
STANDARD INSURANCE, PORTLAND OR
Job Description:
In this role, you will provide strong leadership and exceptional data
management skills. You will design, develop and deliver end-to-end data
solutions, gather and analyze business requirements, develop logical data
models, create physical database designs, assess implementation
alternatives and formulate overall design approaches………..
Contd..
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DATABASE ANALYST…
STANDARD INSURANCE, PORTLAND OR
Develop data models that represent the business information requirements for
particular functional areas, utilize formal data modeling techniques and data
centric tools and technologies, recommend and implement appropriate physical
database designs.
Determine data source analysis, reporting and analysis requirements, and
implement appropriate data centric solutions.
Develop and deploy metadata management processes to increase business-
consumer value of reporting systems and support business by developing and
managing processes and procedures for communicating data content and value.
Analyze business requirements, design entity relationship and dimensional
data models, and support business application systems, data warehouse, data
marts and metadata repository needs.
Provide development and production support and technical assistance in all
areas of data management.
Act as a project lead and technical lead.
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DATA WAREHOUSE ANALYST
XEROX CORP.
Seeking a Co op student with Data Base Analysis and Management, Data Mining
Experience to assist in analysis of existing data bases for summary analysis and
in discovering clusters and associations for service and diagnostic purposes.
Work with team to identify areas where better information can provide improved
profitability. Utilize data mining tools and work process analysis to identify areas
of improvement in current processes. Applicant must be acquainted with basic
data mining algorithms. Skills in communication and teamwork are essential.
Additional skills in generating SQL queries to transaction formatted relational
data bases (e.g. MySQL, Oracle) is also useful. Java programming skills are
desirable.
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DATA WAREHOUSE ANALYST
MC LEAN, VA
QUALIFICATIONS:
B.S. in Computer Science or related discipline or an
equivalent combination of education and experience from
which comparable knowledge and skills may be acquired; and
one year of experience in data warehousing.
Analyze, develop and evaluate data mining methodologies
using data mining and data analysis tools.
Design, develop, test and maintain databases and
application projects.
Create data repositories.
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DATA WAREHOUSE ANALYST..
SOFT SKILLS
Soft skills include:
Solid Analytical skills
Quick Learner
Communication (written & verbal)
Comfortable operating in an environment with ambiguity and
frequent changes of direction and/or priorities.
Basic Facilitation
Attention to Detail
Data Analysis
Multi-tasking ability
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DATA WAREHOUSE ANALYST..
SOFT SKILLS..
Other competencies:
Excel, Word
Knowledge Sharing with other teams members.
Relational Data Base Concepts.
Queries against complex relational databases
Data Quality Standards & Policies
Advanced Data Warehousing Concepts
An Understanding of SDLC - Waterfall, UML, Rational.
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IT SYSTEMS ANALYST-LOCKHEED
JOB REQUIREMENTS
Bachelor’s degree in CS or related discipline: OO,
Java, c/c++, CORBA, OMI, PowerBuilder,
NetView, Motif, Unix, Sun Solaris, Vx Works,
full life cycle s/w development
Responsible for full life cycle software development and
integration which includes the development of requirements,
design, implementation, test, maintenance, and customer
acceptance of software. Candidate will work with COTS such
as databases, operating systems, device drivers, graphical user
interfaces and real time systems based on the needs of the
program or system.
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GETTING THERE
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GETTING THE JOB
STRENGTHEN YOUR RESUME
Apply for scholarships/awards
Be active in student organizations
Do summer/part-time jobs
Certifications
Perform well in course projects (work in a company if possible)
Take additional course work
Volunteer
on-campus (University)
off-campus (elementary schools are receptive)
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CERTIFICATIONS
Software technologies
Flash, PHP, ASP.NET
W3 Schools, Taming the beast
MCDST (Microsoft Certified Desktop Support Technician)
pass two exams on operating systems
MCSE (Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer)
pass four Operating System, 1 design, 2 electives
MCDBA (Microsoft Certified Database Administrator)
design implement, administer Microsoft SQL server
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GETTING THE JOB
SHARPEN YOUR SKILLS/IMAGE
Make resume stand out
Prepare portfolio if possible
Prepare answers to interview questions
Practice communications
Review essential ideas in courses
Go to career fairs and talk to recruiters
Impress recruiters!
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IF STILL ON JOB MARKET
Consider Master’s degree
M.S.
MBA
Work on strengthening qualifications
e.g. take DS305
try to get a certification (e.g. MCDBA)
Be on the look out for opportunities
Try to maintain positive outlook
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ON THE JOB TIPS
Be prepared for self-study
Arrive early and leave on time rather than other way
around
Know culture & adapt
Do not be an individualist, be a team player
Communications are important
network
beware of colleagues!
Display initiative
Know when you are up against a wall
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TIPS FOR A SUCCESSFUL CAREER
AND HAPPY LIFE
Job satisfaction important
Some ups & downs
Adjust to circumstances/go with flow
Recognize problematic situations
Accept reality
Prepare for good opportunities
Have balance
Network of friends important
Manage finances wisely
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BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS
1) Eric Tolle “The power of now”
2) Spencer Johnson, “Who moved my cheese?”
3) Robin Sharma “The monk who sold his Ferrari”
4) Robin Sharma “Who will cry for you when you die?”
5) Deepak Chopra “The seven spiritual laws.”
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