I’ve noticed that many of my peer’s LinkedIn profiles no longer have dates of their degrees and their work only goes back so far. Possible reaction to ageism?
Discrimination against age is just as egregious as discriminating against race or gender. But lots of these tech companies pretend it's not.
I don't really feel there is any discrimination towards race or gender. There just happened to be disproportion numbers in terms of age and gender for other reason, and most tech companies will prefer minority groups to even out the number. It's like minority privilege... I'm a double minority and just calling it as I see it. But discrimination against age is very real.
Agreed. I see the opposite. Many women specifically targeted for promotions because of their gender.
Yea I'm thinking about doing the same thing. I want to take off my graduation date from my resume. can I do that?
I would think that after a time, your experience should grossly overshadow your education and your date of graduation becomes meaningless. Your dates on your work experience should paint a picture of your cumulative experience. That should really make your graduation date irrelevant.
Of course you can. I think after several years of experience you can take off graduation dates and gpa. They become useless to your actual experience
I think so. I don't think they can ask your age during the interview process either.
I'm 29 and I feel really fcking old... Yea I'm gonna remove my graduation date.
35-year-old me isn't competing for the same sorts of jobs as 25-year-old me. It would be weird if I hadn't learned things in 10 years of experience.
nfLx46, What kind of titles do you look for as a 35 yo, and what were you looking for as a 25 yo? I'm intrigued by career progressions.
I feel there is rampant ageism in the industry, not just in hiring practices but also in the way companies are managed and structured from within. It feels like it is much more difficult for older people to find non-management (but senior) roles, or roles outside of their immediate purview, even if they are qualified for them. I also see this focus on youth reflected in benefits offered at top companies (lots of free food and cashlike perks, but scant on 401k matching in many places). I haven’t looked at hard data on this, but have come to this conclusion based on many conversations I’ve had with people of all ages, as well as what I’ve observed happening in many places I’ve personally worked. I think it’s a much more concerning issue than some other issues that we are focusing on as a community. I also think it’s unfortunate because older people have a wealth to offer and teach younger people— particularly about emotional intelligence in the workplace, something that often (but clearly not always!!) is taught by age— and it’s unfortunate to miss out on that. Ah, the hubris of youth...
All true and your CEO and founder has made some of the most age discriminatory statements yet no one in the valley seems to care.
Ageism is rampant in the tech industry. I’ve been in tech of and on for 20 years. Mostly as a software engineer. Now when I look for work no matter how hard I try I get zero callbacks. I can only get recruiters in non tech businesses to contact me. You young engineers when you start getting north of 40 better plan to be supplanted but the shiny new college graduate with the latest hot new skills.
Engineer at costco, not exactly a hot brand. Here is why age is harder... out of college you have potential and moldable. 15 years later you better have proven the potential or your worth goes down. I dont see ageism at manager of manager or principal/staff levels. If you are still sde ii you either lack talent or drive. Shit happens but rarely for 15 year straight
Yah you miss the point completely. Don’t drag my skills into this. I worked at Microsoft for 6 years. I left to start my own company. You have no idea
Yes, age discrimination is a huge issue. At Microsoft, most people I know personally who have been laid off were over 40. It’s so obvious. And no, please don’t tell me it’s because they let their skills lag. Some have been the best people. I was told recently at an interview that they specifically wanted a millennial. Was shocked they’d say that in person. To me, that’s no different from saying “you’re black/white/Indian so don’t even bother.”
I was poking around on the Microsoft careers website and found a position that read like a second job out of college. They actually had the words “early career” in the description. Had my wife look it up (she works there and was appalled by this) and it was a level 60. I know level 60 can make over 6 figures so I know a lot of older coders that would be more than happy doing this. It sucks.
Why is it so difficult for companies and many individuals to see how immoral it is to discriminate on age!? It's just as immoral as discriminating on race and gender.
That is just for the people from 90s and early 2000s. Now there are a lot more people who started from 2010 who turned 30 and they will continue to be hired as there are a lot more of them now than they were. It will not be as big a problem going forward. Mark Z himself is old at 34
34 is old to you?
Yup. I'm 30 and I am most definitely not as sharp as I was 10 or even 5 years ago