Java is in high demand, and if you know either C and/or PHP I'm sure your friends will pick it up. Although there's some competition, you don't have to worry with competing with the 20s kids as long as you are an OK programmer. I believe there's enough demand for your friends to get hired, and theres a ton of resources on java stuff. Better yet, if you can manage to get Oracle certified, I'm sure that no recruiter will put you aside.
Consulting is rather easy to join (comparing with the other IT stuff, such as startups or reputed companies, consulting, etc), provided you can cause good impression with the recruiters. Technical interviews are normally easy, and there is scarcity on the supply side. The hard part is really getting the interview.
I helped a friend of mine who didn' finish his degree and was working in a music shop to enter the consulting industry. The plan was basically a) get some skills and b) bombard alot of recruiters to try and get interviews. We rehearsed some interviews so that he could feel the stress, and I pushed him to study some github projects. He got hired within a month or so, and he's on his second gig.
I'm currently taking a Java class at a non-profit org and they suggest the same strategy. Can you please point me to the Java Github projects that you suggested to your friend? Any other tips or advice would be appreciated.
Java is in high demand, and if you know either C and/or PHP I'm sure your friends will pick it up. Although there's some competition, you don't have to worry with competing with the 20s kids as long as you are an OK programmer. I believe there's enough demand for your friends to get hired, and theres a ton of resources on java stuff. Better yet, if you can manage to get Oracle certified, I'm sure that no recruiter will put you aside.
Consulting is rather easy to join (comparing with the other IT stuff, such as startups or reputed companies, consulting, etc), provided you can cause good impression with the recruiters. Technical interviews are normally easy, and there is scarcity on the supply side. The hard part is really getting the interview.
I helped a friend of mine who didn' finish his degree and was working in a music shop to enter the consulting industry. The plan was basically a) get some skills and b) bombard alot of recruiters to try and get interviews. We rehearsed some interviews so that he could feel the stress, and I pushed him to study some github projects. He got hired within a month or so, and he's on his second gig.
If you (or anyone) want my .2c, let me know.