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I am looking to go to certain job sites and submitting my resume/cover letter/reference letter. However, these jobs are either software tech jobs or dev jobs that normally ask for project experience.

I am wondering if it is ok to submit a small enough flash drive with previously made projects or is this asking for trouble overall?

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closed as primarily opinion-based by gnat, Jim G., Vietnhi Phuvan, Chris E, Michael Grubey Dec 15 '14 at 16:09

Many good questions generate some degree of opinion based on expert experience, but answers to this question will tend to be almost entirely based on opinions, rather than facts, references, or specific expertise. If this question can be reworded to fit the rules in the help center, please edit the question.

  • Be sure you own the software before you distribute it. If you can get something posted on like codeplex with good reviews is good path. – paparazzo Dec 13 '14 at 20:36
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    possible duplicate of How do I write a résumé for a job in which I have no professional experience? – gnat Dec 13 '14 at 21:45
  • The answer shown in the link given is not what I am looking for. I am not asking about how I should write on my resume. – Virusboy Dec 14 '14 at 5:10
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    @Virusboy: I meant my comment entirely seriously. Given what can be done with something that fits in a flash drive case, I simply wouldn't accept one from an unknown source. Posting on a trustworthy Internet repository is less likely to raise that concern; jpatokal's suggestion of github is one approach to doing so. – keshlam Dec 14 '14 at 5:38
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    A flash drive from Virusboy, can't wait to plug that in. – jmorc Dec 15 '14 at 13:35
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Flash drive?! This is the 2010s, the standard place to post your personal projects is online on github.com. Then you can just add a link to your profile in your resume. And if you're not familiar with Git, if you work in IT, you probably should be.

Edit: But on rereading your question, I agree with the other answers that they're almost certainly looking for experience working in large projects, not the code you've written.

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  • +1 For mentioning GitHub. The reality is if you want pretty much any coding gig nowadays knowing an SCM is required and Git (as well as GitHub) are pretty much the standard in that. – JakeGould Dec 14 '14 at 8:18
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I am confused by your interpretation of the phrase "dev jobs that normally ask for project experience." You are asking if you should submit a flash drive.

Project experience means that you have worked professionally with a group of programmers. That implies that you will have worked in an organization where somebody besides you defines the software requirements, and your team has to split the tasks. You have experience with working with configuration control, deadlines, testing requirements...

I wouldn't want to see examples of code as part of the hiring process.

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    To hire a developer, you'd still want to see code, but I could agree with you if you mean that seeing code isn't going to provide any validation of teamwork or project processes. – Joel Etherton Dec 14 '14 at 14:11
  • I might want to see examples of code, having seen a few people who were good algorithm designers but had idiosyncratic-to-the-point-of-unreadable coding practices. But I agree that project experience does not mean solo coding experience, and if the former is being requested... well, involvement in major open-source projects might count for something, but single-person efforts probably don't unless they show exceptionally high levels of understanding of code structure for maintainability, testability, etc. – keshlam Dec 14 '14 at 23:14
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I am wondering if it is ok to submit a small enough flash drive with previously made projects or is this asking for trouble overall?

If the jobs you are seeking require project experience, a flash drive containing stuff you did on your own isn't going to overcome the lack of that requirement.

Almost certainly, the job requirements you read meant "project experience in a work environment", not "things (projects) you did on your own".

Perhaps they exist, but I know of no interviewer who would bother to plug in a flash drive from an unknown candidate, in order to explore the fun projects they did in their spare time.

Instead, if you land an interview, be prepared to talk about what you have done on your own, and how you believe it indicates your ability to handle real work projects.

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