Coding in 2024 is a Career Misstep
Photo by nuddle @nuddle on Unsplash
Tech talent continues to be in demand! What’s more is the fact that software developers earned a median $132,270 in May 2023, which is a good salary in anybody’s book.
So, is 2024 the year for new developers to start their 6-week journey to becoming a programmer? I’m afraid I think this might not be the right move right now and salary is only part of the story.
Here is why entering software engineering in 2024 might just be a major career misstep, and warrants thought.
Why becoming a software developer in 2023 is a mistake
Salaries Are Not What They Were
Taken in isolation software developer salaries are really good. Outstanding even.
Take a look at the median salaries for software developers in the USA:
Yet there is another side to this story.
Layoffs in 2023 likely created increased job competition and a drop in salaries (in Australia, and other horror stories of 50% pay cuts).
AI is Destroying Jobs
Remember when AI really hit the scene way back in 2022? The truth is AI is changing coding from being a job for developers to people being AI supervisors.
The market for junior developers could be the hardest it’s ever been as simple development jobs are automated. If there are no more junior jobs in the market how will new coders hone their skills to be “production ready” and become the senior developers of tomorrow?
Since junior developers are unable to identify issues in generated code you might as well get a product owner to “code” the solution using AI — and then employ a senior developer to fix the issues afterwards.
In this world (and we aren’t quite there yet, but we are approaching it) there isn’t any space for junior developers. Even if senior developer salaries hold there isn’t space for the new generation to come through.
Programming? It’s a Tough Gig
Programming is a difficult and immersive job. You need intelligence, training, focus and dedication. It’s (in my experience) unlikely that others will help you on the way, you simply have to keep studying and working to develop competence in your chosen technical field. If you’ve seen the books promising that you can learn Python in 24 hours and whatnot, remember this: It’s a lie, it takes years.
Even when you have a job it’s tricky to get another one. I should be studying for interviews now. I should be on LeetCode even though I’ve multiple degrees and 10 + years of experience. I need to study to have any hope of passing interviews and changing my job. It’s not easy working a full time position and putting in the hours to get the next opportunity.
Programming? It’s a Really Tough Gig
Once you’re through your coding class, university course, or YouTube marathon you might well score a job, and good on ‘ya for doing so. In this market just to be employed is really achieving something.
The cream of the crop might be employed by FAANG companies, but most go to a small software dev consultancy. There isn’t anything wrong with that, but the pay and conditions are not at the level of the largest companies.
Even if you’re in an elite company you might need to battle against the following issues:
Expect Hardcore hours
Unpaid overtime
Toxic coworkers
Poor code practices
A poor developer experience (CI issues, dev unfriendly processes)
Lack of management
Poor benefits
Junior level Colleagues
Lack of career progression options
Poor salary
Coming into the profession junior developers often see many of these issues coupled with poor salaries, low-quality colleagues, and a lack of career progress.
It’s surprising to me that anyone sticks out a software engineering job long enough to become a senior developer.
Conclusion
This article isn’t designed to put you off setting off on a software development career.
I think you should embark on a journey to code with deep consideration and concern. I don’t want you to end up on the scrap heap of broken dreams that sits at the heart of software development.
Programming is tough. But if you really want to do it it’s a rewarding career. Just make sure you really want to do it!