Career Advice in Software Engineering. What do you do and how is the pay?

[dalearyous]

im finishing up my second year heading towards being a software engineer. i recently read in people's magazine or something like that that software engineers are number 1 in demand and average salary is around 80k a year and the job rate is growing like 40 something percent. i also noticed that the top 5% of software engineers make 150k (which seems kinda low considering top five percent).

anyway here are my questions. if you don't mind submit age, what you do (position), and salary or something like "very comfortable living" (you can be vague or whatever). im trying to feel out this field before i commit to it. is your job flexible? thanks in advance

im 20 years old now and the most ive ever been payed was $19 an hour from best buy for one semester and found that it was quite a bit of money for student. im on the east coast so cost of living isn't too bad like DC, NYC, or california.

 

[imported_DarkPenguin]

All I'm going to say is that my current job is nice. It doesn't have the benefits of the last one but at least there are no flights to Bangalore.

 

[Hersh]

Originally posted by: dalearyous
im finishing up my second year heading towards being a software engineer...

So you are a computer science major at a university and is looking to become a software engineer?

Need to know before I share my experience fresh outta college.

 

[dalearyous]

Originally posted by: Hersh

Originally posted by: dalearyous
im finishing up my second year heading towards being a software engineer...

So you are a computer science major at a university and is looking to become a software engineer?

Need to know before I share my experience fresh outta college.

yes exactly

 

[Hersh]

Out-of-college Software Engineers with an undergraduate degree salaries vary from $45k to $60k from the different offers that I looked at during the last semester of college. For a basic background: I was actually a computer engineering major but was more interested in the software science aspect of CompE rather than the electrical engineering aspect of it. My alma mater one of the top 40 universities according to US News for our undergraduate program and our engineering program and CS programs are both highly ranked. Of course if you go into your masters program and PhD in CS you'll be getting offers higher than the range I've mentioned but the varying degrees with a graduate degree is greater and I don't have much experience with it so I won't comment any more on it.

In reality, the offers you receive from companies that you've had SUCCESSFUL interviews with is going to depend on which university you attend. Obviously someone from ITT Tech isn't going to be offered as much of a salary as a student with a bachelor's degree in computer science from CalTech.

I interviewed with over half dozen companies, some big some small. I have received several offers, the smallest of which was a software engineering position with a small company (<200 employees) and since I did not accept this position I do not mind disclosing the offer which was $50k. The biggest offer I received was from a very large corporation and it happens that I liked the people, place, and reputation of this corporation far more than the other offers... so I accepted the offer. The position isn't exactly software engineering but it's more like R&D type of work which still involves development.

What you need to know however is that out of all the people that interviewed me, they were software engineers that were in the field out of college for 1-5 years. All of them said that they work in teams small to big and have deadlines to meet and managers to report to. Some companies have tiers/ranks for their software engineers but most management people I've spoken with said that not a lot of software engineers stay in their position long before they move into management of software engineers.

I'm 23 years old, with close to $40,000 in debt from college tuition since I had to pay it with loans. I live in a city that does not require alot of money to live in so I am living very comfortably so I am thinking about paying off most of my debt within the first year to just get rid of it as soon as possible. You also need to consider the cost of living in terms of where you want to work to how much they are offering. If I was offered $60k in New York and offered $50k in South Carolina or something, I'd lean toward the $50k in SC because I just don't want to pay $20k in rent for a tiny studio apartment when I can spend $10k with a two bedroom apartment in SC.

I have a lot of random tidbits of information there that is really not related to software engineering question but I thought you needed to know that even though you might want to be a software engineer now, you might start up talk with a mid-level manager of a company that is looking for someone with your skills but may not be a software engineering position. It's good to keep an open mind and not focus on one single future, so to speak.

Good luck, feel free to PM me if you have any specific questions for me.

 

[EagleKeeper]

I would be very leary of those nubmers for salary.

Much depends on the geographical location and the actual type of experience/field that one is in.

As an example, I have been "olffered" $80/hrby headhunters to go to San Jose and other places were $35-$40.

NYC are "listed" as close to $100.

However, what is listed is not what actually happens unless you can walk on water for the client.
Salarys will be about 75% of the hourly rate at most.

 

[Hersh]

Originally posted by: EagleKeeper
I would be very leary of those nubmers for salary.

I actually got those numbers from my alma mater's career services for the 2005 undergraduate student graduates who reported their salaries AND from personal experience just a few months ago. There is no standard in salary packages every company is going to offer something different.

Oh and dalearyous, I forgot but your school's career services does have a TON of information and they work with you to get in touch with alumnis who are working in the field you are interested in as well as pull up statistics for you.

 

[MrChad]

I'm 25 years old and a software consultant. I started out of school in a more traditional programming role, and now my job is more of a mix between business analysis and programming. I make enough to live comfortably, even living in Manhattan. I agree with EagleKeeper that the salary numbers you quoted seem high for an entry level position. But you shouldn't be discouraged; software engineers make a decent living, even in entry level positions.

A few bits of advice:
1. Your computer science courses in college will give you a foundation of technical skills. What will set you apart in the job search process is communication skills. The ability to write and speak well are highly underrated in the computer science programs I've seen. If you can, take some extra writing classes and don't neglect your social development.

2. Experience will make a huge difference in setting you apart from other candidates. Try and find a summer internship in your field.

3. Coding is the easiest part of software engineering. The tough parts of the job are communication, problem analysis and problem solving. Experience will help you in these areas more than anything else, so in addition to internships, look for extra-curricular activities and classes that help you improve in these areas.

Good luck!

 

[Hersh]

Originally posted by: MrChad
A few bits of advice:..

Wow, it's a few bits of advice but great few bits of advice.

When I was in the computer engineering program, one of the things that the college of engineering at our university pushed was classes for doing presentations and also technical writing. These kinds of classes prepared me for interviewing, writing letters to companies / thankyou letters to interviewers etc.

 

[dalearyous]

Originally posted by: MrChad


A few bits of advice:

yes i definately agree. i have greatly considered an MBA immediately after just because its only 36 more credits and would give me more options and room to grow. my communication skills are prolly better than my coding skills at the moment heh. both my parents have been teachers and i enjoy giving presentations etc..

thanks hersh and everyone else for what you wrote. its very helpful. im not at all disappointed with the predicted numbers. coming from a blue collar family those salaries would be awesome.

edit* btw, how much more valuable is someone who can program in linux very well?

 

[MrChad]

Originally posted by: dalearyous
edit* btw, how much more valuable is someone who can program in linux very well?

Don't worry too much about programming in one language versus another or in one environment versus another. Good programmers are highly adaptable. The ability to navigate *nix shells is certainly useful, but you'll often find that you're building a Java program for a Linux-based server one month and a .NET program for a Microsoft shop the next.

The key is to understand to the fundamentals common to all languages and environments. Once you have those nailed, you'll be able to adapt quickly and effectively to whatever is thrown at you.