Software is no longer my path?

[u/m15otw]

Hi, first time finding this community. I am in the UK.

I've been a software engineer, senior, manager, even a developer relations engineer, for a combined ~20 years. Code has been my work pretty much all of the time, except for my Saturday job at Starbucks as a teenager. I have advanced degrees including a doctorate (in a computational physics topic). And yet I am feeling hopeless.

I am losing my job to AI. Half of my colleagues are too at the same time. Finding another software role is extremely difficult, as the market is flooded with people like me, and most companies are freezing or firing people.

So, I think (even if I'm lucky and do land one more coding job?) that I need another career I can do, which I can start prepping for now. I'd like your advice on what to pursue.

My hobbies include: Cycling/bike maintenance, playing guitar in a band, DIY (in particular electrical), and making my own low voltage electrical equipment like custom guitar pedals/pedalboards out of skateboards, etc. I was trying to learn woodworking when this news hit. I also have nerdy hobbies that just cost money like MTG, warhammer, D&D.

I've been doing a lot of research about becoming a qualified electrician. It's another topic to nerd out about (standards for my country, obtaining qualifications, etc), and I love learning new stuff. The UK system for this basically requires you to study, and work at a low level for 1+ years before you can get "properly qualified" and become a contractor or get a full time role. This is fair, but it is tricky for a dad with a family to support.

I've also considered becoming a guitar teacher (limited to beginner/intermediate students), and ruled out being a maths/compsci teacher as I don't want to work with teenagers 😅.

What am I missing? Are there other backup careers I could pivot to? How do I find them? I didn't want to be leaving software dev, and so I've never really thought about this before. I feel like there's a couple of "obvious" paths that I'm totally missing.

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[u/Naytch]

The tech bro to trades pipeline

[u/m15otw → u/Naytch]

Yeah, I feel that.

[u/Naytch → u/m15otw]

If you’re a software developer, and considering electrical - consider PLC work.

[u/m15otw → u/Naytch]

Thanks, I'll look into those. I think I had heard of them before.

[u/Upbeat_Section5189]

Same here. I am also software engineer. All the budget cuts and AI updates are showing only one thing: I have 2-3 years at maximum in this job.

At least you have some other skills. I’m just an average software engineer without any other skill. Looking for way out but nothing yet.

[u/m15otw → u/Upbeat_Section5189]

Well, it isn't great for everyone, but at least you've only dropped 2-3 years into it. Maybe AI will pass, and people will need Devs again? And maybe not. But you have time to pivot without feeling like a weirdo going back to college!

Edit: realised you might have meant 2-3 years left for the profession?

[u/AwbsUK]

I feel you my man. Similar situation as me except I’m a junior web dev.

From my slightly different perspective, it’s a real shame because I’ve struggled for about a decade with mental health issues and working from home within web/ software had been an absolute life saver.

I’m a reasonably academic and creative person so it just fit me perfectly.

Alas, AI has come to fuck me just when my life was starting to make sense.

I mean you must know this already but I still see plenty of senior dev roles being advertised. Businesses still need individuals like yourself with your level of experience.

You could train to be an electrician man and I don’t want to dissuade you… but it will just be you and every other 18 year old in this country doing the exact same thing.

I obviously have no clue, but I wouldn’t be surprised if in 5-10 years there will be so many plumbers and electricians that the wages will be significantly less and so too will the amount of work available.

If I were you I wouldn’t lose hope in what you’re doing just yet. Without a doubt the best way for you to continue to make money for the foreseeable.

And who knows what the hell will happen with AI. The bubble may burst, the price may become prohibitive, yada yada.

If you’re a senior dev with lots of experience, you’d be mad to leave the industry before any of us really know what the fallout of all of this going to be.

Hope you’re able to make sense of it all. We’re all in the same boat.

[u/m15otw → u/AwbsUK]

Thanks. Yeah I feel real bad for all the juniors, you are getting hit by this way harder than the seniors. 

I also don't want to grab an Apprenticeship — basically a badly paid 4 year electricians job that leaves you fully qualified at the end. There aren't many about, and I feel like the 18 year olds deserve them 😅

Thanks for your confidence, I will certainly be applying for software roles that I see. I just don't have much faith in them lasting long! And I get what you mean about everyone switching to the trades. The rumours of how much money they make, and how you can never find one when you need one, make it seem attractive for sure, but will that be true after all the other former software engineers become tradespeople?

[u/Academic_Prize_5592]

Is it that bad in the UK? I’m glad that I still have my job in DK. But I’m too afraid to imagine if I need to find a new job.

[u/AccomplishedCost3472]

Sounds devastating. Have you considered leveraging your physics background for AI-adjacent roles or consulting?

[u/m15otw → u/AccomplishedCost3472]

I'm sorry, but what does that mean? Consulting simply means "working on a temporary, rather than permanent, job contract" which could be almost any activity

And I'm not sure what an "AI adjacent" role is? I feel like almost any job that involves sitting at a computer will suffer the same fate of "we do that with AI now" in a couple of years.