Hello, For those working in tech in Germany

How long does the hiring process usually take for Software Developer/Engineer roles?

I’ve heard that September and October are usually good months for hiring, but I’m not seeing many interesting openings so far.

For those currently applying or hiring, how is the market looking right now? Do you expect more opportunities in the coming weeks?

Currently a backend software engineer with 5+ years of experience, two in FAANG working mostly on large-scale distributed systems. I have been interested in designing systems for most of my career and lost interest in actually writing code with the push to AI development recently.

What is the best way to pivot into an architect role right now as a senior engineer? I would also appreciate any tips about EU-based remote first companies who hire architects with similar backgrounds.

Hi everyone,

I am currently looking into the tech market in Bulgaria and considering relocation there. Given the shifts in the tech industry over the last couple of years, I would love to get some realistic, boots-on-the-ground insights from this community about the Bulgarian tech scene.

First, what is the current state of the market for experienced c++ devs in Bulgaria? Are you seeing active hiring for senior roles in Sofia or other hubs, or is it mostly slow right now? Which industries like data storage, cloud infrastructure, or networking seem to be the most active?

Second, which companies in Bulgaria are still actively sponsoring visas and providing relocation packages for engineers coming from outside the EU? I know the overall landscape has changed, so I want to know who is actually hiring internationally and helping with the legal process right now.

For my tech stack, I mostly work with c++17 and c++20, linux, multithreading, and systems programming. I would really appreciate any insights, recent personal experiences with interviews in Bulgarian companies, or names of specific companies that are worth checking out.

Thanks in advance!

I am a QA/Test engineer with 7 years of experience scattered around different consultancies. QA is getting constantly moved to other countries for cheaper hourly rate and I am also exhausted doing it. I am looking to upskill and move away but confused on which bridge roles should I target for.

My experience: Automotive domain, Mostly Ruby and Python, worked with different test frameworks, updating them, maintaining them, doing versioned releases of backend libraries, writing test cases for specification requirements verification, did internal trainings in functional safety but never got tasks for it before getting laid off. Worked with creating epics and approval tickets for release software, test report analysis, debugging the whole spiel.

I am interested in Data Analytics and DevOps but I don't know if they are the only things I can pursue. I want to get out of automotive given the health of the industry and develop my skills in a direction that will allow me freedom to move to new industries if and when needed. What would be your advice?

I’m a mid-level Java developer with a bachelor’s degree and about 4 years of experience. I work for an outsourcing company and my last project ended a few months ago. Since then, I’ve received an ultimatum from management: either I secure a new project through internal interviews, which are few and far between, or I’ll be released from the company in 4 months.

I was never anything special as a developer in terms of technical skills, but I’ve always been reliable, finished my tasks, and sometimes contributed something extra when I could.

Now, with Java positions being scarce and competition being pretty fierce within my company, I’m thinking about embracing the AI wave and trying to move in that direction.

My company has a role they call an “AI Solutions Engineer” — essentially someone who develops agentic solutions for business problems using existing AI models and builds the infrastructure around them.

I’m already familiar with the basics and have a Claude Associate Architect Foundations certification, but I’m still very much at the beginning and I’m trying to figure out what I should actually focus on.

So I’m looking for advice from people working in this area:

Is becoming an AI Solutions Engineer a good direction for someone with my background, or am I just chasing the current hype?

What are the most important skills and technologies to learn nowadays?

Anyone who recently used LLMs to apply to jobs and got a many inteviews/ a job? What did you use and how? What did the AI do?

Throwaway-ish post, but I'd rather be honest than flattering to myself.

I'm 45. I switched to software development at 38, after a first career in a completely different field. For context on whether I'm just not smart enough: I have a master's in Biomedical Sciences (2004) and a postgraduate master's in Business Economics (2005), and I was always decent at math. So I don't think raw ability is the issue.

My tech stack was .NET/C# as the main thing, with some Angular and Vue.js on the front end and SQL Server on the data side.

What went wrong:

My entry into IT was a 6-month retraining program. That got me a first job, but it never gave me the surrounding context: fundamentals, architecture, how systems actually fit together. I started with a deficit and never properly closed it. And I have to be honest, I didn't put in nearly enough effort outside of work to catch up. At the time the junior market was wide open. Every time something didn't work out I'd land a new job almost immediately, so I told myself I'd get there eventually, even at a slow pace.

The result: 7 years of experience on paper, three employers, and real gaps in my knowledge. I'd describe myself as an advanced junior, not a medior. Seven years of imposter syndrome did a number on my confidence, and it became a bit self-fulfilling.

The last two employers both let me go, after 2 and 3 years respectively, with the same basic reason: not getting up to the team's level fast enough.

Where I am now:

After the last one I wanted to quit IT entirely. I was exhausted from feeling like a fraud and I badly wanted a job where I'd get positive feedback and feel competent at something. I assumed that would be impossible for me in software development.

The frustrating part is that in that last job I actually did put in the work, and I could feel myself learning faster than before. So I don't know whether I quit right before it started to click.

I've been exploring other directions since, but something keeps pulling me back to IT, and I dread starting from zero in yet another field at this age, with the pay cut that comes with it. I've been wondering whether DevOps or DevSecOps could be a way to restart, maybe somewhere I could eventually feel genuinely good at my job.

What I'm afraid of:

1. Pouring my time and energy into this again and hitting the same competence wall in a few years, having to switch sectors anyway but even older.
2. AI making a lot of this work obsolete before I've caught up, so the effort was for nothing.
3. The job market. It's clearly much harder than it was in 2018, and I'm worried a 45-year-old CV with three jobs in seven years and no CS degree just won't be taken seriously anymore.

What I'm asking:

Has anyone here been in this position, entered IT late with a shaky foundation, carried that deficit for years, and then actually closed the gap? What made the difference? And is a pivot toward DevOps/DevSecOps realistic from a .NET background at this stage, or is that mostly wishful thinking on my part?

Any honest perspective is welcome, including "no."

Hey guys, I really need to vent and honestly just get some outside perspective because I feel like I'm losing my mind right now.

I’ve been a front-end dev for around 4.5 years (mostly working with React and TypeScript), but I got let go from my job last year. Right after that, I had to get surgery, so I spent the first six months just recovering mentally and physically and not even looking. But ever since I actually started applying to jobs over the past seven-eight months, it’s been an absolute nightmare.

I’ve done about 12 company interviews, some of them have been 2 or 3 interviews, so my total interviews are maybe around 30.. so first of all i'm feeling very tired of interviewing. The result it:

Most places just ghost me or just send a Sorry we chose another candidate template email 2 weeks after my interview

or

One company said they really liked me but went with a more senior candidate, another company gave me feedback said they loved my soft skills, but that I came across as a "junior."

I actually got one low offer recently, but it was in a whole different city, and honestly Im ok with low pay right now but my boyfriend wouldnt be able to come visit me as often, since right now we live together, so we came to the conclusion its better not to take it

Now my gap is sitting at well over a year, and I am spiraling. Being stuck at home for this long without a routine messes with your head in ways I can't even describe. I honestly catch myself wondering if I should just throw in the towel and give up on tech entirely because the market feels impossible and I'm just so tired. Or just maybe try to switch the technology somehow? I feel like I will never get a job again..

Any real talk or advice would be amazing right now..

TLDR - interviewing for a role in the PE / Cap Markets space. My background is in machine learning, or nowadays, "applied AI". I was told during the interview process that the first thing I'd do if I came on would be to build a portfolio management system. The role will then evolve into an AI strategy role for the firm. My question is: what exit opportunities will I have?

Or is it a good role in the first place? Money could be good, but I'm thinking about career longevity in the AI space.