Right now, it's looking like I might have two options to choose from for internships this summer.
The first option is at a fintech company. From talking to others at my school who have interned there, including one of my friends who is now working there full-time, they sound like a great company to work for with an awesome culture. Every one of my interactions with anyone I've met from the company (including on-site) has been positive and left me feeling confident that the work environment there is going to be a good one.
I have an interview this week with a government contracting company that specializes in computer security. The internship is basically a training program for computer security, and we'll be going over reverse engineering, systems programming, and exploitation. I have been passionate about security and lower-level development since I was a kid, so this will be an incredibly tempting offer if things go well with the interview.
As far as career progression goes, I'm trying to get a feel for which one will offer the most opportunities and growth. My better half and I want to stay in the west, so any financial stuff in New York is off the table. If I go with the security option, I don't plan on staying in government contracting forever and want to eventually move to a different company to do research.
I am also interested in doing contracting on my own and possibly bootstrapping something further down the road. I feel like I'll get a more general development experience with the fintech option, but the security option will give me more specialized experience, and I'm not sure what is better if I want to pursue those goals.
I wanted to know what HN's thoughts are on the two industries. Does one have more potential for growth than the other? What are your experiences with each industry?
The first option is at a fintech company. From talking to others at my school who have interned there, including one of my friends who is now working there full-time, they sound like a great company to work for with an awesome culture. Every one of my interactions with anyone I've met from the company (including on-site) has been positive and left me feeling confident that the work environment there is going to be a good one.
I have an interview this week with a government contracting company that specializes in computer security. The internship is basically a training program for computer security, and we'll be going over reverse engineering, systems programming, and exploitation. I have been passionate about security and lower-level development since I was a kid, so this will be an incredibly tempting offer if things go well with the interview.
As far as career progression goes, I'm trying to get a feel for which one will offer the most opportunities and growth. My better half and I want to stay in the west, so any financial stuff in New York is off the table. If I go with the security option, I don't plan on staying in government contracting forever and want to eventually move to a different company to do research.
I am also interested in doing contracting on my own and possibly bootstrapping something further down the road. I feel like I'll get a more general development experience with the fintech option, but the security option will give me more specialized experience, and I'm not sure what is better if I want to pursue those goals.
I wanted to know what HN's thoughts are on the two industries. Does one have more potential for growth than the other? What are your experiences with each industry?