I will be graduating with a bachelor's in IT soon. I truly enjoy programming, yet I do not have any relevant work experience in IT. With the current job market, what are my chances of landing a programming position.
I understand and agree that someone in my position will have to begin somewhere and most likely, that somewhere will be at the bottom. The question that I have is how has the current market impacted IT in general and how that might relate to entry-level candidates?
very good. No matter how much I hate recruiters they will find you a job
This is heavily dependent on the area you are searching for a job (both geographical and professional).
First, if you have no experience you need to let go of any pipe-dream you have for your perfect job. Your first job is not going to be perfect. A lot of people in college/fresh out want to get a job in gaming. This will not happen to 99.999% of them.
Once you let that go, the answer is: yes, you can land a programming job with no experience. It may not pay fantastic, but it will give you the necessary "1-2 years experience" that most job postings list.
While we are on the subject of job postings, most postings say "1-2 years experience" but they may accept someone with less experience. A lot of the time they put that on there to sort of "keep out the riffraff". You should apply to these positions, but keep low expectations. The worst they can do is say no, sorry, we need someone with more experience. But they might just take you, or find another position that requires less experience.
When I interview candidates right out of school, one of the questions I ask is, "What is the largest project you have completed that is completely outside of your assigned schoolwork?"
The question is designed to find people who have an interest in the process - because the guys who live their lives as geeks really do make the best employees, and require the least on-the-job time for training.
The moral of the story? If you don't already do software in your spare time, get to it. Bring a portfolio to your interviews and use it as a talking point.
Take the job search seriously. Meaning follow the normal job search rules. Write a cover letter applicable to the job you are applying for not just a generic one. Send an email thanking the person for the interview and make sure to follow-up if you do not hear back.
The key things I look for in a junior position are enthusiasm. Right now for entry level positions I give people a programming test that consists of writing a Terrarium 2.0 creature. So far everyone just writes a plant that sits there. During the test they have full access to the Internet and documentation. Personally I would try to use that as an opportunity to show off my creativity, but so far nobody has been very excited about it.
I do realize an entry level job is unlikely to be someone's dream job, but appear like you want the job anyway. Even if it is just a stepping stone to something better someday.
It may mean you end up finding another way in then going straight into a developer position. Maybe a testing position, commonly called "Quality Assurance," would be easier as this may require less credentials, though a key point in an interview is to show that you can learn and do get things done. There may be a help desk position that is another way into an organization's IT area.
Another idea is that there is this reverse flow of offshoring work for companies in the US where it didn't work out so well and a hybrid of on and offshore workers are used for projects may be another factor in some things if you are looking to get into the big stuff like SAP or Oracle.
Regarding your question specifically on how the current market has impacted IT in general and how that might relate to entry-level candidates, I can't imagine how it could be anything but bad.
Practically every sector in the economy is correcting down. Some sectors (banking, insurance and now auto) have cratered completely. I'm not an economist, but I think it is a pretty safe bet that most markets are now (or will be) over supplied with labor, including IT. So in that situation, the worst position is at the bottom.