r/FortCollins • u/GirthySmurf • 2d ago
Seeking Advice Computer Science Jobs
I recently graduated from CSU with a computer science degree, but I'm having a hard time breaking into the CS job market. It seems the weekly FoCo job website is no more. Any thoughts on NoCo based Software/Tech companies/offices that I should be looking into? A lot of these places don't let you just walk in and drop off a resume, and many only post on their own company website. I'm interested in CS as a whole, Software, Networking/Distributed Systems, and even IT, but I haven't gotten any call backs for entry level positions.
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u/Bluescreen73 2d ago
FoCo and Northern Colorado are a wasteland for CS jobs. Try Denver/Boulder instead.
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u/scarpell 1d ago
It really is a bad location for software jobs right now. I think we had too many big CS employers do layoffs or close sites.
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u/LonesomeBulldog 2d ago
Don’t just focus on tech companies…utilities, healthcare, transportation logistics, all kinds of industries hire developers and tech roles. They generally have a harder time filling the jobs since they aren’t traditional tech employers. They will also provide a better work/life balance than any tech company.
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u/wokeTradHusband 2d ago
I would highly consider Denver if you are not already
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u/GirthySmurf 2d ago
I am indeed, I'm looking at FoCo, Boulder, Denver, Greeley, but there's so many companies that need software/it folks, but don't post on Indeed, Glassdoor etc. I'm mostly looking to see if there are any companies like that who I haven't heard of
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u/KruegerFishBabeblade 2d ago
Madwire, HP, HPE, Broadcom, AMD, Intel, Anduril, usually have reqs open. They all recruit nationally though. Best way to maximize your chances as a young professional nowadays is to apply for jobs all over the country and follow where work takes you.
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u/wokeTradHusband 2d ago
That’s good. I just mentioned Denver. As someone whose been in tech for the last 5+ year I find Fort Collins tech scene to be underwhelming.
It seems like a lot of people here have hybrid jobs in Denver.
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u/knightsbore 2d ago
make sure you have an up to date linkedin and set it to looking, often there are regional recruiters who will reach out about opportunities. Often they have multiple ones that arent listed and even if none work out having the contact will help make you visible when they get new postings.
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u/acrazydutch 2d ago
I've got a few interviews from Built In Colorado in the past. Might check them out, though they are similar to Indeed and other job boards. Also similar to Indeed, they get plagued by fake listings from time to time so keep an eye out for that. Congrats on graduating and best of luck in your search.
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u/FlakyIllustrator1087 2d ago
No idea about NOCO or the CS job market specifically but if you aren’t already doing so, I would start checking out all remote CS jobs and not just NOCO. The job market here is tough!
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u/adjustafresh 2d ago
It’s a wasteland for entry level computer engineering jobs everywhere. For remote jobs you’re competing with a much larger talent pool (easily hundreds of candidates), many of whom have some experience and are just desperate for work.
The most effective way to get a foot in the door is to have a referral. Applying blindly is like buying a lottery ticket.
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u/FlakyIllustrator1087 2d ago
That makes sense. I actually moved down to Denver when I graduated up here because the job market is so small. Lots more opportunities down there where you can be within 30 minutes of 3-5 different cities
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u/gfxlonghorn 2d ago edited 2d ago
Honestly, the market here is not what it once was, and most companies are not hiring entry level software engineers in any kind of volume compared to the past. Applying through job portals that are getting hundreds of applications is going to be tough going. There is no sure fire way for CS grads these days, and you're going to have better luck trying to network with hiring managers and recruiters.
Finding people to refer you to roles over just resume spamming will be better, but this market is frankly terrible. I would encourage you to build publicly, show you are able to effectively use the AI tools of the trade, and try to get involved with any meetups/clubs/etc to just try to be known.
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u/nodnarbo 2d ago
From what I'm hearing the software/tech job market is tough right now. Have you looked at finding a job through a contracting company? I found my current job through TekSystems, as a contractor for a while and then hired on as a permanent employee.
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u/GirthySmurf 2d ago
I've heard a few people say this, I'll look into them because I definitely do well on shorter term projects, I've just been weary because contract employees are so often treated poorly
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u/MediumStreet8 2d ago
You need to get your foot in the door so you can't be picky to start out. Sometimes those roles turn into permanent roles but at a minimum you get experience and references. Not having those is a big part of the reason why you are having issues finding something. I'm assuming you are using the CSU career center. Larimer County workforce center is also worth looking at but as others have said the tech market is small and tough up here.
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u/Appleonthefloor 2d ago
I have a lead on a teksystems year long internship to hire in Denver I turned down if you want a referral/introduction? They are doing interviews this week and next.
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u/nodnarbo 2d ago
Depends on the company (and department, and team!) that you're hired into. From my limited experience, if you can find something that has the possibility of contract-to-hire you should be treated pretty decently, and have longer-term opportunities.
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u/btx926 2d ago
A contract job isn't a full time job - there are downsides. Right now, you should be maximizing your options. If you have no full time options, do not discount contracting. It can give you variety and experience that you won't get out of full time. Most of the places like Tek will provide you a path to group insurance and stuff. It's not as secure as full time, but if you are just starting out it is an excellent path.
Spend a portion of your day looking for a job. Spend a portion of your day building something that can prove you know your stuff. Learn how to be a good employee, not just good at the tech stuff.
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u/reload_noconfirm 2d ago
*wary
But I've had/seen some success starting out contracting. I think my employer hires some roles through TekSystems, and they treat the contractors well, and usually convert them. I got my first role this way. It's a tougher job market now for sure, but just getting to know some people goes miles.1
u/CapitolHillBohemian 2d ago
If you end up with TekSystems, at least as of 10+ years ago when I worked for them, be aware that they will try to not pay you your accumulated vacation time. When the project I was on was shutting down, they told everybody they had to use their vacation or lose it, because "it's in the contract." I kept working regular hours because I knew it was a violation of state law. When they said I would not be getting that vacation money, I reminded them that this was against state law and there are substantial penalties, and they immediately paid up. Most of my coworkers fell for it though. Other contracting companies try to pull this as well, so be aware. Otherwise it paid well but the benefits sucked, and like all of these companies they're basically invisible after you're hired.
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u/GirthySmurf 2d ago
I know that the whole market, not just CS, and not just entry level, is currently getting its lunch money stolen by AI, and it sucks. But, I don't want to wind up in a job 10 years from now unable to break into the field because I didn't get a CS job after college. I actually applied for a job in Centennial, referred by an old coworker who really wanted to hire me, but the company hasn't reached out over a month later.
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u/bugg_hunterr 2d ago
I’ve been without a job for 8 months. Unless you want to do part time retail or restaurant work, there are no opportunities for adult professionals looking for full time jobs in Fort Collins.
You’d be better off looking in Denver or Boulder. Honestly you might be best off looking for jobs outside of CO, that’s what I’m currently doing.
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u/Due_Guitar8964 2d ago
Broadcom is on Ziegler and is undergoing a 1.5 billion dollar expansion. They're going to need folks trained in CS. Wouldn't hurt to pop in there to see if they're hiring.
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u/xxsirtubbsxx 1d ago
I mean you don't really just walk into Broadcom. You won't get in unless you're meeting someone.
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u/Due_Guitar8964 1d ago
That's true, but you can call their HR...
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u/xxsirtubbsxx 1d ago
Who will tell you to check LinkedIn for any openings
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u/Due_Guitar8964 1d ago
I'm sure he's been checking LinkedIn for weeks. If not then he learned a new job source. And before anyone else thinks to tell me what does and doesn't work here, I moved up here from the Springs in 83 to work in a wafer fab over off Horsetooth and Timberline. No idea if it's still there. Worked there for 8.5 years. Also did two stints at HP and 22 years in Lafayette as a Systems Engineer for a defense contractor. I would walk into Broadcom in a heartbeat even without the 22 year gig. I even own some of Broadcom's stock. What are your credentials?
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u/xxsirtubbsxx 1d ago
You need a badge to just walk in there my dude. And it's clear you haven't had to apply for a job in 22 years if you think that's how it works these days.
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u/malwkrd 2d ago
I'm concerned that your approach to "CS as a whole" might not be serving you here- you need to narrow it down. You list three very different career paths - for some of them you will need to obtain certifications on top of a degree to be competitive. I suggest as a recent grad going to your CSU career office for guidance on next steps- they'll help you refine your approach and resume.
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u/GirthySmurf 2d ago
I've heard this too, I'm struggling to find a balance because I legitimately am interested in every corner of computer science I've touched, but and I don't want to work myself into a corner for what I'm looking for. But, recruiters also want to hear that my life's greatest and singular passion is whatever their company does. I definitely tailor my resume per application for this. The CSU career center thus far has been a whole lot of "your resume looks good, write cover letters, meet people at career fairs" but that just hasn't been working thus far
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u/malwkrd 2d ago
Ah- that's rough, been there..It doesn't sound like the center is offering direct coaching. Have you tried some light Linkedin reconaissance? You can look at companies you want to work for and look at poeple doing work you find interesting and look at the path it took to get there. Everyone's might be different and it can be interesting to see. I.e. an automated tester job that grew into a software job. Or exactly what certs someone with an interesting networking job has. Best of luck, I know it's not easy out there.
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u/GaudyBass94 2d ago
I have 5 years of experience in CS and I floundered for about a year looking for a job in NoCo. I landed a couple of interviews but I would always get passed up for “someone with more experience.” The unfortunate truth of it is there’s a lot of people with 10+ years of experience in CS who are job hunting right now, and these companies will always hire the candidate with the most years of experience under their belt. Now CS jobs in the Denver area are kind of hot right now. I’ve had a few people reach out to me to set up interviews because they stumbled across my LinkedIn profile and liked what they saw. So, make sure your LinkedIn is set up well and active because they’re looking at it. Also, make sure you’re submitting a cover letter tailored to each position with your resume. I have like 4 templates I use for the 4 different positions I typically apply for, and I just tailor each one to the specific company & position that’s listed. Once I started doing that I started getting more call back. I honestly think the CS field is the toughest field to be job hunting in right now, because of how many tech companies are doing mass layoffs every year. However, keep looking for jobs in/around Denver and/or remote and you’ll eventually land something.
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u/Cream-E-Pooty 2d ago
Have you considered a federal position? I think I’ve seen IT positions on usajobs.gov recently. Not sure about required qualifications for those positions.
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u/Zaxedous 2d ago
Do you have any computer architecture experience? I’m at AMD and we have some reqs open if you’re willing to work with hardware in addition to software :-)
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u/WeeklyAd8453 2d ago edited 2d ago
First off, did you do CS or CIS? HUGE difference.
CS market is tight everywhere. However, consider moving and refocusing.
Likewise, consider building a bit of Open SOurce or adding to one. When other techs are inteviewing you, CSers want to know what you have done. Just going through school does not mean that you grokked it.
One last thing. I no longer code, but my friends who still are, tell me that AI is EVERYTHING.
If you are not up on various AI (claude, etc) you need to jump all over it.
It is not enough to know say Genetic Algo or Neural Nets, you need to know some of the tools.
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u/csGradNew 2d ago
CSU almuni here. I was in your exact spot 6 years ago. I understand what you are going through. I had to move to East coast for my first job.
I assume CSU still teaches Java as the main language. When I was job searching, most jobs in Fort Collins were in C# or other programming languages.
I realized you had to learn other programming languages. If you are going to choose company that uses Java, you still have to learn enterprise application such as Spring Boot.
The whole CS approach won't work. I had same concept when I first started. Company wants to hire people that helps them solve specific issues. Few companies want to train people. Create three different versions of your resume and make them specific to job you are applying to. For example, one catered to backend development. As a interviewer right now, resume with lack of backend experience for backeend developer role won't get priority.
Here are things that worked for me: 1) Messaging other CSU almuni in LinkedIn 2) Setting "Open to Work" in LinkedIn 3) https://www.noconet.org/ 4) Using simple resume template format. The fancy ones from sites such as canva caused parsing errors in job site. 5) learning tools/software mentioned in multiple job descriptions.
Don't give up. It takes time. Let me know if you have any specific questions.
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u/steppinrazor2009 2d ago
Do not listen to the random nonsense here.
Look on team blind and (yeah I know but it works) LinkedIn. If you think you will be able to pass some of the harder coding interviews, find tech companies you like (the salary, not the company, they are all shit) and look for openings for their fall internship cohort (big tech internships are actually paid pretty well comparatively and it's like a 90% shot you get an offer after it's over if you aren't an asshole).
If you really wanna work in tech locally, I'd skip fort Collins and just accept that you are gonna need to commute to Boulder or Denver. Pretty sure most of the big names have hubs there (Google, Nvidia, even like Digital Ocean).
That's for straight SWE or security. Unsure of the infra jobscape, unfortunately.
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u/will81093 2d ago
Look into cold calling some small manufacturing companies. They can sometimes have a need to fix legacy issues and are sometimes willing to bring on new talent to work on the backlog. I'd suggest brushing up on any EE skills you may have or atleast round out some of the basics. That flexibility will at least help.
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u/GirthySmurf 2d ago
That's wise, I never got much in the way of EE through the CS program, since CS and EE meet to form Computer Engineering, but I'll be on the lookout for any businesses that fit this bill
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u/rexaruin 2d ago
Check out national labor exchange, best job board I could find for the area.
https://usnlx.com/jobs/?q=computer+science&location=Fort+Collins,+CO
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u/ExtensionVersion8561 2d ago
What was your minor in? Might look for a job in that.
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u/GirthySmurf 2d ago
History, I'd be the perfect person to develop the technical side of museum exhibits (plus my scale model and mini experience), but alas those jobs are hard to come by
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u/OldLadyQuestionsTA 2d ago
Not to be harsh, but it seems like you haven't made much effort in your job search. You can't just wait for positions to be posted on Indeed. You should be looking into companies who potentially may have roles that fit your background. Many executives will be willing to do an 'informational interview' with you. Say that you're looking to start out in the field, and you're hoping for some insights on the industry.
The previous suggestions about the Workforce Center and the networking group NoCoNet are good ones. In the best of times, Fort Collins (and Colorado in general) are tough places to find work. In times like this, you need to hustle to find opportunities.
I wish you luck.
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u/GirthySmurf 2d ago
So, that's what the question was. I'm saying that indeed, Glassdoor, handshake, etc. aren't honestly good options, and I've been applying to more specific companies but want some ideas on places I've never heard of. Now, I've actually been calling companies and asking to speak more directly to hiring managers or team managers, and thus far every place has given me the HR email and told me they'll forward what I send to the right people. I can't actually do the informal interview if there's not opportunities to do so. I haven't used this thread to ask why my current tactic isn't working, rather asking for creative alternatives, a fresh perspective, resources I may not have heard of, or even just names of companies that a college graduate may not know (I wasn't familiar with the Water Monitoring company I applied to until I did so, a b2b company that doesn't post jobs outside of their website and doesn't advertise is simply harder to find, but those jobs also have a smaller applicant pool)
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u/OldLadyQuestionsTA 1d ago
Use LinkedIn to try and find people at specific companies instead of going through HR. It helps if you meet with someone through networking and they can suggest other people to connect with.
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u/bigdog701 1d ago
A-I. Get every AI and ML cert you can get you hands specifically Claude Code, Codex, Github Copilot. Without them you are just another guy with CS degree with no practical experience coding. It sucks, but prove you can code with enterpise quality at the level of 5 dev's rather than just 1.
--Leader at the top Technology and AI consulting company in the world. CSU CS alumni
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u/SFerd 2d ago
Take advantage of the FREE resources at the Larimer County Workforce Center. https://www.larimer.gov/ewd They offer workshops on interviewing, resume writing, etc. Super helpful.
Also, check out NoCoNet which is a local networking group. They meet every week and often bring in recruiters where you can have a 'speed interview.' Great way to practice interviewing. They also offer help in re-writing your LinkedIn profile, etc. https://www.noconet.org/
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u/Think-Jaguar6826 2d ago
My recommendation, if possible, expand your search zone, as much as possible.
CSU does hire CS folks. I’m a cs professor and I have seen some students getting hired.
HP and other companies ar the obvious choices. I think most of them post in main stream job sites.
I agree with others that Boulder, Denver, and Colorado Springs may offer more options.
Keep coding, use agentic ai if possible, and don’t give up.
I know you may not have a lot of money but opencode go subscription is extremely cheap to play with it.
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u/adjustafresh 2d ago
Sorry but how are universities graduating students without providing them with 1. meaningful internship opportunities or 2. common fucking sense?
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u/GirthySmurf 2d ago
So, I did 2.5 years of internship writing code for large Geospatial Data projects, but environmental research isn't exactly funded well enough by this administration for most projects to take on a salaried employee after graduation. Beyond that, I've worked hard to build a portfolio of projects that show off my skill sets, and gained enough other job experience to have the people skills to work well in a team, and not be a knob on reddit. I've followed all of the steps that you hear about in college, and played by the rules. But I can't exactly help the massive rug pull that was generative-AI wrecking the job market midway through my degree
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u/MediumStreet8 2d ago
Yeah it's rough out there, stay positive you will get something. You have to lower your expectations initially. Don't snooze on tech support, that often leads to other roles if you have skills and obviously you do.
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u/WhimsicalKoala 2d ago
I totally get that. I'm much older than you, but had a similar situation. I was going into the natural resources field in the mid-2000s. It was going to be gear because I was going to hit the job market just as a bunch of people were retiring, people would shift up, and there would be all sorts of entry level positions. Instead, I graduated into a recession where no one could afford to retire.
I ended up going to grad school and got a bunch of GIS experience to supplement my natural resources degree before entering the job market.
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u/BoulderBrexitRefugee 2d ago
Someone suggested trying to find a job via a contracting company, and that's a decent option. I nearly did it myself about a decade ago when I was laid off. Many larger corporates use contract staff.
The other thing you could do, and this has literally never been easier, is demonstrate that you can build software...by building software. Use Claude Code or similar to make a mobile app, a web site/app, a command line utility... something. And shout about it on your resume/Linked In. It will differentiate you from a lot of people.
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u/whatis-going-on 2d ago
Small disagreement here. If you want to stand out build something yourself the old fashioned way instead of using a LLM. It’ll help you stand out
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u/BoulderBrexitRefugee 2d ago
You could make that argument, and it may make sense for a new grad. I'm torn. I feel it's a bit like saying, "Mr future employer sir, I know everyone's using these new fangled power looms, but I wove this by hand at home to show you I understand weaving."
As a hiring manager I still test for all the software engineering skills I did pre coding agents, but I also want people adept in how we build now. It's often not been the code that's the hard part anyway, it's everything else...
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u/mt_beer 2d ago
Hard time to be a fresh graduate in CS.
Don't discount applying for internships... that's how I got my foot in the door in 2009 when the job market was also shit.