Entry Level Programming Position?

[SupraEnthusiast]

Hello Beyonders,

I am currently reaching the end of my first year of college. The program I am enrolled in is a mixture of business management and ITT. The ITT side that i chose is programming rather then networking. I currently can program in VB.Net and i am starting to learn C#. My questions for employers out there is:




What is the starting wage for an entry level position in programming?
Would you recommend learning any other languages?
Would I be working in a team with other programmers?
What are advancement opportunities?
How often are people promoted within the company?
What sort of equipment would i require to start?
What environment do your employees work in?
Is there anything you can recommend that i acquire to better my chances of getting a job?


Thank you,
Matt

[Critical]

http://i50.tinypic.com/mrxsua.jpg

This sums it up quite nicely.

[mazdavirgin]

It really depends on your educational background. Where are you taking your program and what is it actually called?

[SupraEnthusiast]

I assume your talking about the degree im receiving and it will be my Bachelors of Applied Science in Technology and Business Management from Mount Royal.

[Pahnda]

Originally posted by SupraEnthusiast
Hello Beyonders,

What is the starting wage for an entry level position in programming?
Would you recommend learning any other languages?
Would I be working in a team with other programmers?
What are advancement opportunities?
How often are people promoted within the company?
What sort of equipment would i require to start?
What environment do your employees work in?
Is there anything you can recommend that i acquire to better my chances of getting a job?

Thank you,
Matt


Depends on the market and your education. I think right now with that diploma I would shoot around mid to upper 40s.
Of course, the more you know the more jobs apply to you. VB, while OK, is kind of a garbage language to know as your primary language unless you want to be doing administrative excel apps all day. C# AND C++ is a good base but the more you know the better, like with any other job.
Depends on the scope of what you're working on but software jobs typically require you to work with people either to get information to do what you want to do, to ensure you can mesh your changes/development in with the rest of the code or products, among other reasons.
Depends on you. There are of course project and team leaders, managers, directors, etc... and it really depends on how you interface across business units/divisions and your knowledge of your company's product. You won't see advancement until you can show you have a solid understanding of just what it is your company does and some of the finer details of how your company's software operates.
This isn't a very good question... It's whenever there is a need for it.
A computer... What do you mean by this question? Specs? Peripheral hardware? If so, it depends on your company's industry among other things.
An office... It can vary from company to company pretty heavily but generally a lot of internal training and cooperation goes on. Social events nearly every month and it's pretty laid back on things like dress code, etc.. Unless you're constantly dealing with clients.
Realize that programmers who can use a language to do something clearly defined are a dime a dozen. But programmers that can communicate effectively, problem solve, and come up with an action plan then implement it in a given language are what companies are looking for. Just knowing a language is not enough, you need to be a critical thinker and be able to come up with viable (and hopefully innovative) designs that can be well implemented and well tested.

[SupraEnthusiast]

Thank you all very much for your information. I think i've found what i want.

thanks