Nancy Sinclair


Position:

Applications Developer

Employer:

Self Employed

Job description:

I'm an independent contractor who builds websites for financial services companies.

Salary range:

$125,000

Job satisfaction:

The best part about my job is also the worst -- it's constantly evolving. The rate of change in technology is so fast that I constantly have to learn new skills. This is very exciting and challenging, but it can also be tiring. I work in an extremely fast paced part of the business world (Finance) and I'm frequently put in the position where I have to completely rebuild an application using a new language or tool set that I've never seen before, and the project was due last week! Fortunately, I seem to thrive in this environment and would generally rate my job satisfaction as extremely high.

Employment history:

I've worked in consulting my entire career. I was lucky enough to join a fledgling startup in 1992 called Sapient Corporation. It's now grown into a very large and successful consulting firm. After doing a couple of years in traditional consulting, I decided to strike out on my own. I work with an agency that helps match me with contracts. I like the fact that I remain outside of the company structure and can concentrate on building applications instead of performance reviews and promotions and the like.

Suggestions for students:

I got an "F" in the very first computer class I ever took my freshman year in college and would never, ever in a million years have thought I would end up building complex computer systems. I would say to keep your mind open and not have preconceived notions about a specific career. Also, always take the stock options. When I worked for the startup, they couldn't really offer me a decent salary, so they gave me stock instead. At the time, the stock was worth nothing, but over the past few years it's grown to the point where it's worth much more than any salary they could have given me.

Advisor/Student relationship:

I don't really know much about the undergraduate program, but I do remember that as an undergrad myself, I was advised to take as many business classes as I could (Management, Accounting, Economics). Taking those classes have given me a greater understanding of the business and makes it easier for me to communicate with my users (who are all Finance grads).

E-mail Nancy

Date of last update: Oct. 25, 1999

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