Need Advice on Switching to a Better Product Company
I’m looking for some career advice because I’m not sure if I’m undervaluing myself or if this situation is more common than I think.
I’m currently working as a Salesforce Developer at a product-based company.
When I joined, I was initially offered a full-time role. Later, they changed it to a 6-month internship, which I accepted. That internship was then extended to 8 months. I wasn’t happy about it, but I stayed because I wanted the experience.
After that came the part that still bothers me. Instead of converting us to full-time employees, they moved us to a government apprenticeship program while continuing to work in the same company on the same project. I received a stipend and I do have an experience letter for that period, but I’m still unsure how much other companies value apprenticeship experience compared to regular full-time experience.
Finally, I’ve been a full-time employee here for the past year.
So in total, I’ve been working here for about **2.8 years** as a Salesforce Developer on real production projects. My current CTC is **₹11 LPA**, and despite the total tenure, my compensation hasn’t really grown the way I expected.
I’m now planning to switch to a better product company.
A few questions for people who’ve been through something similar:
Will recruiters count the apprenticeship period as valid experience if I have an experience letter?
When interviewing, should I present myself as having 2.8 years of experience or only 1 year of full-time experience?
Is ₹11 LPA reasonable for someone with my background, or am I underpaid?
Which product companies would you recommend targeting for Salesforce developers with around 3 years of experience?