How Open Source IT Projects Could Boost Your Resume
Posted August 4th, 2015
As an IT candidate looking to boost your resume, you only have so many options. You could pick up a certification or even another degree, but both of these are expensive and take a significant amount of time. As an alternative, consider working on open source projects. They could prove to be more of a professional asset than you realize. Here’s why:
You Pick Up New Skills
Working on open source projects is a great way to fine tune the skills you already have and pick up new ones in a practical setting. If you frame this experience in the right way, you can mention it on your resume as a way to prove you have these skills even if you have never worked with them in a professional or academic capacity.
You Demonstrate Your Initiative
Regardless of whether you currently have a job or are looking for a job, working on an open source project shows prospective employers that you are an active member of the coding community and committed to building yourself into a truly well-rounded professional. In the same way that volunteer work looks good on a resume, open source experience demonstrates that you make meaningful use of your time outside of work.
You Gain Potential Connections
According to the Future of Open Source Survey, as many as 78percent of companies are currently using open source code. That means the person reviewing your resume may already be working on one of the open source projects that you choose to work with. That will help separate you from other candidates, and when it comes time to interview, you will already have a point of connection. Plus, working on open source projects is generally a great way to network within the coding community.
You Verify Your Credentials
Hiring managers look at your degree and your past working experience to verify that you have the skills you claim to have. But working on open source projects gives even more weight to those credentials. If you claim to have Linux skills, for example, and have worked extensively on open source projects, you are more likely to be seen as a true Linux expert.
The great thing about open source projects is that they are free to participate in, you can pick projects/assignments that interest you, and you can generally dedicate as much or as little time as you have available.
To find more ways to sharpen your IT resume, work with the team at Bayside Solutions.
