You've realized a few parts that didn't go so well and that you would have maybe done differently. That's all in the past. Start your course re-navigation today! Try to take all the things that make you embarrassed in the past and use them as learning experiences, rather than baggage that makes today more difficult.
Agree, I was working 60 hr weeks and earning a nice investment banking salary. I now work every waking hour and earn maybe 1/8th as much. We have to fight for every bit of progress that we make, but I love (almost) every second of it. All types of employment have their trade offs; you have to figure out what you are comfortable with and go with it.
I was a math major for a while in school but moved over to economics (still math intensive, lot more job security). An EE major is really impressive, so if you can stick it out, I might just do it. It makes you very versatile and a very desirable candidate.
Also, if you are looking to connect with employers and are still a college student, check out my startup: CollegeJobConnect.
I think there is too much risk with a traditional hedge fund model so Goog is going the route of seed-investor, angel investor, VC - bigger risks, bigger rewards ... less muddying of the legal waters (potentially).
My hat is off to you and you make a good point that you can act autonomously and you didn't waste time searching for a co-founder.
While going solo does have these benefits, I personally think that lasts only so long before you start to miss out on the benefits of having a co-founder working along side you. You will fight, argue, and yell at each other for sure, but you'll also collaborate, pick up each others spirits when times are tough, and have a more diverse set of skills that pack your startup's talent portfolio.
In general, if you can start out working alone and get as much done as you have, then by all means do it; but I'd be on the look out for someone that compliments you and can help propel your company forward that much faster. Don't force the connection, but don't take the mind set that "I've come this far alone, I don't need anyone else" either.
That's one thing that I think needs to be explained a little better. I'm always open to working with somebody else and will be hiring at some point.
The point is that by deciding to just do it on your own if you don't have a co-founder is you remove a factor that you have little control over anyway and can focus on things you can control.
With educational institutions, you might want to consider giving away your application for free to a few clients first. These sales cycle can be so bureaucratic it is often of more (unrealized) value to be able to say "we have 5 other very similar clients using this already" than trying to charge right off the bat. Taking the factor of "I don't want to be first" out of the equation could be a viable way to ultimately find paying customers.
Although, if you are solving a true, acknowledged pain point they will likely offer to pay right then and there (these situations are very difficult to come by!) so be mindful if / when you make an offer to let them use it gratis.
If you aren't solving a true, acknowledged pain then you probably won't even get people to use it for free. They may sign up - but they probably won't use it.
Yeah - my point with that was that sometimes your solution can be to a problem they do not realize they have or do not understand the value of what you are providing, so adding additional barriers to adoption in the form of payments should be avoided early on. If you think they need to get behind the wheel to take it for a test drive in order to realize what you are selling, make it easy for them to do just that.
At CollegeJobConnect, we help companies connect with undergraduates for internships / full time jobs. When speaking with some HR departments that "just didn't get it", we'd say: "ok, but why don't you try it for free for the time being then" - after they jumped on and saw how they could tap into job-seeking undegrads, it clicked.
I'd look to summarize the projects individually or put them into groups and describe why they are important / show what you can do, then provide a link to the project or portfolio of projects. Sell it first, provide supporting details for a potential employer's further inspection. Regarding what to add and what not to, think about what story you want to tell. If you want to get into a specific year, include projects that pertain to it, even if they are small. If it's a certain technology, then those are the winners.
After you have your resume put together, I'd like to mention my startup, CollegeJobConnect. I apologize if this comes off as a shameless plug, but I think it is very relevant. On-campus recruiting and career service departments limit the true array of companies you could and should be connecting. We are trying to change that. We're an online platform that is dedicated exclusively to helping undergraduates (juniors / seniors) connect with cool companies for internships and full time hires throughout the entire academic year. We're working with a few hundred undergrads right now and over 15 companies. If you think it would be worthwhile, we'd love to get you onboard (takes 2 mins to get up and running). Having your resume summarize what you've done and what you can do is step #1, next is getting it in front of the right opportunities that you'd like to pursue.
