Confused between startup job, assistant professor role, and continuing tech career abroad goal
I’m currently working in a startup as a software/AI engineer and recently got an offer with around a 20% hike, but I’m very confused about whether I should continue.
The problem is:
work feels repetitive
not much mentorship from senior engineers
learning growth feels slow
startup stability worries me
living away from home is affecting my health and mental state
At the same time, I have another option:
An assistant professor opportunity at a nearby college (20 mins from home). The idea would be to prepare for NET/SET, maybe PhD later, teach students, and have more stability for at least a year.
But I’m worried that:
moving into academia may make it harder to return to industry later
I may drift away from tech growth
abroad opportunities may reduce
My long-term goal is:
settle abroad eventually
become highly skilled and difficult to replace
work on meaningful AI/backend/software systems
build a stable and strong career
I’m already working with things like:
AI/LLM workflows ,LangChain, RAG pipelines, APIs/backend work , prompt engineering, deployment-related tasks
Third option is continuing job search aggressively, but current market conditions are making it difficult and responses are slow even after using premium job platforms.
If you were in my position:
would you continue startup life?
temporarily choose stability through teaching while preparing? or keep pushing hard for a better tech role?
Would especially appreciate advice from people who:
transitioned between academia and industry
moved abroad from India
work in AI/software engineering
faced burnout in startups
Thanks.