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33 votes
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Software engineer lost his $150K-a-year job to AI—he’s been rejected from 800 jobs and forced to DoorDash and live in a trailer to make ends meet
34 votes -
I have no idea to advance in my career toward data science
I did a masters in data analytics, and then the niche I fell into in the working world was building dashboards, reports and spreadsheets of financial data for non-technical bureaucrats. Instead of...
I did a masters in data analytics, and then the niche I fell into in the working world was building dashboards, reports and spreadsheets of financial data for non-technical bureaucrats. Instead of ensuring data quality by technical means, my current company often just has me manually reviewing and checking financial data. This is pretty frustrating to me because I have no education in finance, and the things I miss or get wrong are so second nature to my boss that he doesn't even see them as something I should have been trained on. The only technologies I use are SQL server and excel. Any proactive steps I've made to automate processes has been discouraged as not worth the time.
I'm aware that most people spend years on tedious stuff before ever getting to work with more engaging technology, but honestly I'm starting to wonder if they've forgotten I'm not a finance guy. I want to move up in my career especially to escape my current role, but I'm feeling completely lost as to how. There's no obvious role in my company that could be a 'next rung of the ladder' to advance into, so there's nobody I can emulate to help chart a course. My boss had an unconventional path to his current role, and isn't really into manager stuff like career mentoring, so he's no help in that regard.
To anyone with experience in data science, what is the advancement supposed to look like? What are the key skills I should be developing? Am I being too averse to learning the subject matter of the data I'm working on? Any insight is appreciated!
13 votes -
Career advice: specializing in niche tech stack vs. finishing first degree
Hello all, was inspired to fish for responses after seeing another user request resume feedback. Apologies if the background is on the longer side. TLDR: Dropped out 10 years ago; have only a high...
Hello all, was inspired to fish for responses after seeing another user request resume feedback. Apologies if the background is on the longer side.
TLDR: Dropped out 10 years ago; have only a high school degree and university transfer credits. Conflicted between finishing my degree online while working full time, vs. specializing in a niche tech stack (Salesforce) via current employment. Looking for any input because I'm prone to decision paralysis.
Background
I'm in a really weird place currently in terms of long term career track. I dropped out of college for computer science a decade ago. The school was a private for-profit (yikes) and I couldn't transfer any credits out. Either way, I was aimless, so I enrolled at a local community college with the intent of transferring to a state 4-year, earn my bachelor's, and figure things out from there. A connection at the community college helped me find full-time employment in a help desk role, so I paused my studies.That help desk role turned into a weird application analyst/developer position that involved configuring applications using a low code platform. I taught myself Python and some super basic React while there, and my crowning achievement was making a hideous set of Python scripts that ended up replacing an automation program that the company couldn't get working anyways. When my boss at that job moved to a new company, he contacted me in the next year to fill a systems analyst position, which in practice was learning Salesforce administration and whatever else third party tech tools the company decides to adopt for projects. I've been here for 1.5 years now. The pay is not amazing for HCOL, but I'm still living with family and the work is fully remote so I'm not complaining.
The best part, actually, is that there's a lot of room for career growth with actual on the job experience... if I teach myself Salesforce development. There's a few other people on my team who all stumbled into Salesforce admin tasks like myself, but none have a CS background so I've already taken on and delivered on some tasks that would previously have gone to a consultant.
I don't know how many folks here work with Salesforce development, but my research tells me that it's a locked ecosystem, incredibly flooded on the entry level by people holding certificates from Salesforce, and a different enough beast from traditional software engineering that X years as a Salesforce developer won't exactly translate to X years of experience when trying to pivot to a software dev role. I already had a difficult time getting any responses back when I tried to apply to junior software dev roles during the pandemic - which could be my resume, but I'm sure the lack of a degree and primary work experience being on low code platforms were not helpful. Either way, the thought of relying on Salesforce for breadwinning is... not something I am "above" by any means, but does trigger a bit of anxiety for the future.
The second option would be to go through some reputable online degree program like WGU or CSU Monterey Bay's CS Online. I've actually been slowly earning credits to transfer to the latter, but I've never been a great self-paced learner. I read that these programs are perfect for people working full time, but I absolutely do not fit the bill for the type of student who can blitz through WGU's program in a year. So both would take me maybe two years to complete if I start in 2025, which is something to the tune of $15-20k USD. I can afford this, but it's not exactly a drop in the bucket either. Dropping work to attend in-person at lower costs at a local university unfortunately is not an option.
If I were driven and disciplined enough, I could do both - learning SF dev on my own time and applying it to work, while also earning my degree - but I'll be honest and say that's just a recipe for disaster. I know me; if I had even a fraction of the discipline required to make that work, I'd have upskilled out of here years back when pandemic hiring at tech companies were at an all time high. That train has come and gone, though.
18 votes -
Exhausted Pakistani content moderators are now trying to find other work but have been unsuccessful because their experience isn’t transferable
12 votes -
Men took over a job fair intended for women and nonbinary tech workers
51 votes -
Job search and placement services
I've decided I'm going to start looking for a new job. I'm a software product manager in the US and will be looking for senior positions, hopefully remote. Has anyone used a service to help find...
I've decided I'm going to start looking for a new job. I'm a software product manager in the US and will be looking for senior positions, hopefully remote. Has anyone used a service to help find jobs before? This is the first one I've come across and I'm considering it.
https://www.findmyprofession.com/career-finder/Any thoughts or feedback welcome. Thanks.
3 votes -
Recommended reading for new tech leads?
Hey all, I'm transitioning from a plain old software engineer at my company to tech lead (first in responsibility, then eventually in title)! I'm very excited about the opportunity, but the role...
Hey all, I'm transitioning from a plain old software engineer at my company to tech lead (first in responsibility, then eventually in title)!
I'm very excited about the opportunity, but the role is new, both for my company and personally. Would anyone have recommended reading I could peruse? I'd love to get a solid footing for what I should be doing as a tech lead, and how I can do it well!
17 votes -
Grazily - highly targeted jobs in your inbox
5 votes -
Salma talks about her non-traditional journey into tech and DevRel - a story about building a tech career
2 votes -
What should be on a QA tester’s résumé? Here's what the recruiters say they want to see
10 votes -
Lambda School's misleading promises
8 votes -
Students say the Lambda School coding bootcamp isn't delivering on its promises, with concerns about poor instruction and prospects while being bound by income-sharing agreements
16 votes -
The strangest job listings in tech
4 votes -
How to create events to help girls prepare for STEM careers
13 votes -
"Github Based Jobs Listings": a GitHub repo where IT jobs (mostly US and Canada-based) may be posted for a bounty
8 votes -
Becoming a data scientist: The career path for job changers
8 votes -
How to get started with DataOps
3 votes -
#DataScience Hive mind: I’m writing an article about the career path for job-changers who want to get into data science fields. I’d love your input.
It’s no secret that data science is a good career path. The jobs are in demand, the salaries are compelling, and the work is interesting. So how does someone break in? In particular, I’m...
It’s no secret that data science is a good career path. The jobs are in demand, the salaries are compelling, and the work is interesting. So how does someone break in?
In particular, I’m interested in how an experienced IT professional can move into data science. What advice would you give to someone with, say, five years of computing experience, who wants to break into the field? Tell me about the skills required, where you’d tell your friend to go to acquire them, and how to get a job without a specialized degree. What would make you say, “I want to hire this person, even if the individual lacks the relevant schooling”?
6 votes -
Where to research IT salaries
5 votes -
Should I go to college for computer science?
I have an undergrad degree in polisci. I was planning on going to law school, but got rejected everywhere I applied. I am really reconsidering going to law school. Last couple years, I realized...
I have an undergrad degree in polisci. I was planning on going to law school, but got rejected everywhere I applied. I am really reconsidering going to law school. Last couple years, I realized that I have a genuine interest in coding, and I could pursue it as a career. I learned C++ with online tutorials, and I think I am proficient at it, or at least have the potential to be much better.
Anyway, money is tight, so I would really appreciate any input you have about a career change. Thank you!
(If this belongs on another sub, please let me know)
EDIT: I am in the U.S. I can move states if necessary.
24 votes -
Most AI job listings ask for computer scientists with a PhD. But if you want to move into AI, there are options for experienced IT pros who can deliver on an ML project
7 votes -
The next big blue-collar job is coding
11 votes -
Trying to change my career to freelancing, how plausible is this path?
Didn't know if i should post this in talk or tech, but my focus is on advice, so i guess this is the place. I am currently in the process of changing my career to be a web developer. Studied IT a...
Didn't know if i should post this in talk or tech, but my focus is on advice, so i guess this is the place.
I am currently in the process of changing my career to be a web developer. Studied IT a few years ago, dropped out due to finances, and spent the last few years working crappy jobs.
I designated all my spare time towards learning the basics. I'm confident enough in my knowledge of HTML and CSS, know how to use Bootstrap and i'm currently learning the basics of JS. The Udemy course i'm taking will cover NodeJS, jQuery and some more backend next. After that i plan on learning Wordpress and a framework i guess (React/Vue/Angular). Have i missed something here?
My final goal is doing freelance web development. My question is, how plausible is this and what else do you suggest learning to have an easier time finding clients?
Also, how soon do you figure i could start doing some basic work with simple websites (even if it means using Bootstrap / altering Wordpress themes)? My country is rather cheap, so even 500$/month on simple projects will be enough of a reason for me to quit my 9-5.
Guess i'll need a portfolio too though.
Anyways, thanks for reading. Any web devs out there care to offer advice? I'm dedicated to achieving this goal, but i'm somewhat lost still.
3 votes