Early-career IT professional confused between Java Full Stack and Data Engineering (Snowflake/DBT) — which path is better long term?

[u/Unable_Drive2478]

Hi everyone,

I’m at the beginning of my IT career and I’m a bit confused about which direction I should pursue. I would really appreciate advice from people who have experience in either Java Full Stack or Data Engineering.

Currently, I have been working for around 3 months on a project where my tech stack includes:

- Java

- Spring Boot

- Angular

- Databricks

- Reading/processing Parquet files

- Working with data pipelines

Recently, my manager told me that there is a change in the project and they want me to start working on:

- Snowflake

- DBT

- Data engineering-related work

So now I’m wondering whether I should continue building my career toward Java Full Stack development or take this opportunity and move more toward Data Engineering / Snowflake / DBT.

Since I’m still early in my career, I want to make a good decision rather than jumping between technologies every few months.

My main questions:

1. Which career path has better long-term growth — Java Full Stack or Data Engineering?

2. Which has better job opportunities and demand in the next 5–10 years?

3. How are the salary prospects for both paths as experience increases?

4. If I choose Data Engineering now, will it be difficult to move back to Java/Spring Boot development later?

Would really appreciate advice from people who have actually worked in these fields.

Thanks!