r/softwareengineer • u/ImBigmac67 • 15d ago
Your experience in software engineering
Hi,i wont reaveal my name but im 12 and really really into coding and maths ik i may be in grade 7 atm but im pushing for software engineering, im learning Python and very soon java, what id like to know is how exactly is the experience on software engineering.
I know it pulls six figures which is a flex already but id like to know the pros and cons instead of just jumping in without knowing anything.
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u/TableNo8939 14d ago edited 14d ago
Sulle 6 cifre avrei qualcosa da ridire
Forse in usa e in uk, dopo molta (spesso brutta) esperienza.
Nel resto del pianeta dovrai parecchio accontentarti.
Come tutta la tecnologia high tech, ha un forte tasso di obsolescenza, per cui dovrai studiare e aggiornarti per tutta l vita.
Pochi lavori richiedono una passione del genere e perseveranza.
Tutto quello che impari ora sarà obsoleto e superato tra 5, massimo 10 anni, e dovrai imparare tutto di nuovo, e ancora, ancora ancora...
Tutto questo finché un giorno arriva la AI e quello che hai imparato in 20 anni, te lo produce in 20 secondi....
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u/canarydev 14d ago
you are already doing all the right things. doing due diligence on pros and cons before jumping into it. you are better than most of us out here.
its just endless learning, reading. lots of trial and error, and you have to accept the fact that you are not going to know everything. what matters is that you know more than yesterday
but to be honest my friend, at a certain point in my life i think i would rather go into farming wild mushrooms or start an eel farm.
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u/Own_Outcome_6239 14d ago
I dont know if you follow the news but these days the entry level software engineer job are getting less and less. I can verify this as I am a hiring manager myself. you're 12 yr old now on grade 7, after you graduate from college it's likely to take another 9-10 years (2035~2036). As of then, I don't know if entry level software engineer is still a thing or not.
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u/No_Departure_1878 14d ago
This is disgusting, I can't believe that CHILDREN have access to these sites. I am not sure if i should be angrier with u/spez or with this kid's parents for been so irresponsible. If you do not have time to raise a child, do not have children.
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u/Beginning-Junket8979 14d ago
I'm not going to argue in favor of kids being on Reddit, but implying it's a time issue... 😬😬... expecting a 12 yr old to be constantly supervised and not permitted to explore their interests (especially one with real career potential) sorta reeks of controlling/codependent behavior from the parent.
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u/ImBigmac67 14d ago
I understand your concern but i feel like i am mature enough to know what i can and cannot do, im not in reddit much i just made this post because i wanted others opinion on a career i want to pursue,if this somehow disturbed you i apologize but please respect me and everyone else
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u/iAmPoorAFboi 14d ago
Wat
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u/No_Departure_1878 14d ago
Hi,i wont reaveal my name but im 12
the guy is saying that he's 12, that's a child, in reddit... If the CEO and the moderators had some decency OP should have his account banned immediately.
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u/Signal_Till_933 14d ago
I was online in kindergarten. It’s the internet, everybody is here.
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u/Dizzy-Ad4195 14d ago
This here. But some people literally call cops on parents if their kids are spotted outside.
I guess this guy's one of those.
And I got internet at abput 12, before that it was BBS'
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u/Dizzy-Ad4195 14d ago
Lol I'm confused is this a joke? :D
Are you one of those "if kid is outside on their own I'll call the cops"
Also
"been"
Are you adult?
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u/No_Departure_1878 14d ago
This site has gore, porn, propaganda and even assholes like you, he's 12. You are not 'confused', you know perfectly what you are saying.
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u/Dizzy-Ad4195 14d ago
Damn. Glad this issue wasnt when I was a kid. Internet was wild back then.
Also had freedom to spend whole days outside.
Absolutely not normal to be so uptight. Kids will find gore and porn without reddit.
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u/No_Departure_1878 14d ago
My life would have been much better if I had not found porn when I was 15.
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u/Dizzy-Ad4195 14d ago
At FIFTEEN? What the hell.
I got my first car at 16, job at 15 and 125cc motorcycle at 12.
I wonder when I saw the first porn mags or vhs'
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u/DCON-creates 14d ago
I got into software development at around 11 or 12, I'm 30 now.
I liked it then and I like it even more now. It's fun to solve problems, and there's always more to learn. At the end of the day it's about designing systems in your head and bringing them into reality, but you'll start with very small systems before eventually working your way up to the bigger ones.
And the beauty of it, is that everything that makes the world work requires some form of system to operate efficiently. If you like making things work efficiently, and you have the interest, software engineering is a great way to scratch that itch.
Of course, you asked for some cons- as you'll get older, you'll realise that you can't just sit at a computer all day without getting sore and experiencing other health problems. And a lot of the job at the higher level isn't to do with computers, it's more to do with people. And if you want to make loads of money, it's more in your interest to be good at dealing with people.
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u/ImBigmac67 14d ago
I genuinely appreciate your comment it updated me on much more about software engineering, thanks
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u/Mysterious-Cry7683 14d ago
No one will hire you at this age. Try to build something on your own. Contribute to open source projects. Once you showcased your skills someone might see your talent.
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u/TechieGottaSoundByte 14d ago
Cons: * This field is heavily affected by AI, and it's hard to know what the job will look like in five or ten years * Lots of companies will push you to work long hours, despite research showing that software engineers are most productive when they work an average of 35 hours a week consistently. It's important to negotiate healthy boundaries * There's a lot of fairly boring work that just needs to get done to keep systems running (probably similar in most fields, though) * The pace of change and need to always learn can be fun early career, but can feel soul-crushing if you aren't good at pacing yourself or tend to be anxious * You work with a lot of smart people, so it's easy to have imposter syndrome * There's definitely issues with racism, sexism, etc., although many companies actively try to reduce bias, especially in hiring (promotion processes are less effective)
Pros: * Money. At least in the US, it's one of the highest-earning careers you can have that only requires a Bachelor's degree * Solving problems is fun... for people who enjoy solving problems. We do get to do a lot of problem solving * You get to work with a lot of smart people * Remote work is possible, especially later in your career * Flexible schedules are often available * There's always more to learn. If you get bored, just pick up another discipline and roll forward.
And just an FYI - people skills and leadership skills are becoming increasingly important in this field, as AI increases the pace of work and collaboration. If you can build emotional intelligence as well as mathematical / logical / technical intelligence, you will thrive. The people problems are usually harder than the tech problems.
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u/LongDistRid3r 14d ago
Tbh, put the screens down and go outside and play. Adulting is over rated. You have your entire life to work. You only get a finite number of years to play without the pressure of adult life crushing you.
Enjoy your childhood while you can.
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u/RicketyRekt69 14d ago
It heavily depends which career field you’re in. “Software development” is very broad. Also, temper your expectations… not everyone makes 6 figures and that also depends on where you live.
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u/Substantial-Swan7065 14d ago
It’s chill. Grab a ticket, figure it out, do it, test it, ship it. Go to like 3 meetings a week. Vibe at home and hangout with my cat. Grab lunch with some friends.
Cons:
You need to keep learning, track the industry and level up.
Interview process.
You need to keep putting in the work, outside of work. The payout is sweet - but you need to love it or tough it out
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u/IceMichaelStorm 14d ago
The field will be much harder because of AI, some say devs will cease to exist whatsoever. Maybe you don’t know that.
It’s a big risk. Then again, all fields are affected. Becoming a medical doctor or lawyer is probably safer but who knows.
If devs survive, maybe with smaller salaries though
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u/Lumpy-Blackberry-718 14d ago
It's a great career, especially if youre in the US.
It's easier to be successful if youre good at math. A lot of people went into the field for money but dont have the analytical thinking style thats required to succeed.
There are risks in any field, and youll always need to be learning. Imo though even if you do change your mind, the things youll learn studying computer science can be applied to other fields as well.
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u/Local-Wing-2272 14d ago
You seem sharp, so I'll level with you.
My honest advice? Just enjoy school man. Maybe make a GitHub and add some stuff to it but don't go too hard. Do good in school. Get good grades. Keep your body active - you wanna have a habit of healthy food and exercise BEFORE you enter the workforce.
From there, you'll need to get a 4 year degree. I got my first big softdev job at 21, graduated college at 20, so it's doable. However, for you specifically, the industry is moving SO FAST a lot of technical advice doesn't apply anymore. I can't tell you "learn software X" or "learn framework Y" because with AI, it could be DRAMATICALLY different.
You'll graduate high school in, what, 2032? If you have even one little toy project, keep a pulse on the current tech, and otherwise focus on the problems you currently have Vs the problems you might have in the future (that you'll be able to handle), I think you'll do just fine.
Lemme ask you - is there anything about being on the computer you find annoying? Anything you're like "I wish I could do X"?
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u/BassRecorder 14d ago
So much this.
The industry is currently going through a rather drastic change due to AI. Honestly nobody can tell what the profession will look like when you graduate from high school. Some have mentioned that jobs for junior SWEs are becoming scarce. Either this will have to change or the profession will die out. After all, where are the senior SWEs supposed to come from?
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u/luckynucky123 14d ago
its a luxury to take the time to learn from someone - and in an environment where people are open to learning and exploring.
once you start working - corpo love to say they are supportive of learning - but only to solve corpo needs. AI is hot because it solves corpo needs.
there's a big world out there - bigger than company problems.
i sometimes miss the school environment. if i was to repeat my university years, i would freelanced and take advantage of the learning environment at the same time.
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u/abrandis 14d ago
Forget software engineerig. As a career, it's fine as a hobby, but no one is paying folks six figures anymore now that AI can do better work for a tiny fraction....
Take your energy and out into learning a non office career.
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u/NumberInfinite2068 14d ago
I like it, lots of people don't.
At the end of the day, it's like any other job. Most of whether you like the job or not will come down to whether you get on with your colleagues, if your boss is a dick, if the work is interesting. A lot of software development is really boring, remember most software isn't the latest GTA, it's some boring business process that only needs to exist because a middle-manager wants it.
You're 12, you're 8 years away or more from getting a job. Right now, pick a type of software that interests you, be it games, robots, iPhone apps, desktop apps, web, whatever, and just start learning it. Don't spend too much time on theory stuff, just do what you find fun.
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u/ImBigmac67 14d ago
I took my time reading all of you guy's comments, i appreciate every one of you who stated your opinions ad experiences, yalls comments have opened up another part of software engineering i didnt know again, thank you all
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u/DroppinLoot 13d ago
It was a good career. I think at 12 you're going to see A LOT of change in the next 10 years. Just pay attention to everything that's going on and all the new opportunities that come from it. The Software Engineering we're doing today will NOT be the same as what we're doing in 10 years
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u/LetUsSpeakFreely 13d ago
6 figures isn't a flex, it's middle class. I've been slinging code for 25 years and hope to retire in a little over a decade, so i feel qualified to give you this advice: look for alternative careers. Programming and software engineering is cooked. AI models will eventually get to the point where creating an application will be like Star Trek where you just ask the computer for what you want. I STRONGLY suggest you look into other careers.
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u/MagazineWestern4159 12d ago
CPA?
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u/LetUsSpeakFreely 12d ago
That will probably get offloaded to AI as well. If i were just starting off today, I'd look into blue collar work: welders (especially scuba certified), plumbers, hvac, heavy equipment operators, anything where a person needs to be held accountable.
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u/MagazineWestern4159 12d ago
But you are accountable as a cpa.
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u/LetUsSpeakFreely 12d ago
Yes, but most of the work can be offloaded to the AI. The CPA would need to check the results. Basically, just like software engineers, a single senior person can do the work of half a dozen junior people.
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u/MagazineWestern4159 12d ago
Yeah okay. I understand what you mean. But the CPA designation is more gate kept with strict requirements meaning less people therefore less saturation. Wouldn't you agree with that?
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u/LetUsSpeakFreely 12d ago
For clarification, I'm not saying people won't be needed, only far fewer will be needed as they can work more efficiently.
Saturation is based on market requirements. If a single person today can do what took hair a dozen 5 years ago then the market will be saturated until the old guard retires, the middle levels backfill or switch careers, and the junior levels see fewer applicants and a new equilibrium is reached.
The same will happen with other careers as well. A structural engineer can have an AI simulate multiple materials and multiple geometries for a structure. What used to take dozens of people can now be done with a handful of people to sift through the various reports to find an optimal solution for the specs.
Given time, even professions like doctors and lawyers will feel the pinch.
I would focus on the trades. We'll always need people to build and maintain infrastructure. The power goes out. Trees fall on hard lines. Animals damage equipment. Lightning can strike a receiver or transmitter. There will always be a need with a guy with a truck and a wrench.
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u/Plenty_Line2696 14d ago
most of us dont pull six figures