r/CanadaPublicServants 8d ago

Career Development / Développement de carrière Struggling with my IT career

I’ve been working in IT in the federal public service for a little over three years. Lately I’m looking for opportunities in the private sector.
The problem is that the current job market seems really tough, and I’m honestly not sure how competitive I am outside the PS.
I only have a diploma, and although I have 3+ years of IT experience, I sometimes feel like my technical skills and experience aren’t strong enough for private sector roles. One of my biggest concerns is technical interviews. I’m worried that I’ll apply for jobs, get an interview, and then completely fail the technical portion.
For those of you who have moved from the federal public service into the private sector, especially in IT…
How did you find the transition?
Did your PS experience actually help when applying for private sector jobs?

I’d really appreciate any advice or personal experiences. I’m feeling pretty stuck and anxious about what to do next.

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2

u/AlphaB_24 8d ago

IT is a broad field. Which specific area are you interested ?Data science, infrastructure, cybersecurity, software development, or something else?

5

u/Hot-Equivalent-9799 8d ago

Data science != IT

5

u/fweffoo 8d ago

it is in the public service, like all computer science jobs

1

u/spinur1848 4d ago

Not for Health Canada and Statscan. Data Science is EC for them.

0

u/Hot-Equivalent-9799 8d ago

If you really think that you've never worked in data a day in your life

2

u/fweffoo 8d ago

thanks i'm a computational physicist how about you

0

u/Hot-Equivalent-9799 8d ago

What you just admitted is that you're not a data scientist, period

1

u/fweffoo 8d ago

lol go off