u/futureproblemz

The show is on the 15th, I can't make it anymore and so I sold on stubhub but it still isn't giving me the option to transfer on Ticketmaster

Still lots of leetcode? System design? Something else?

I graduated almost 3 years ago, never got a job as a SWE, eventually got a job as a Systems Analyst and am making 80k. I'm tired of feeling average, I want to lock in the next few months for potential SWE interviews but just not sure how different they are now

A bit about me - I graduated with a bachelor's in Computer Science in August 2023, and couldn't find a job for a whole year. I tried applying to every type of technical role - SWE, QA, Analyst, Help Desk, etc, and had no luck. So I pivoted to looking for a Sales job and found one pretty quickly.

I knew I didn't want to be actually be in Sales so I started applying to jobs again 4 months in and I landed a Junior Consultant role a small SaaS Company. That was an incredibly stressful and low paying job so I started applying to new roles 6 months into that job, and by some miracle I landed a Business Systems Analyst role at a Bank, which I've been in for 8 months now.

The first few months of this new job were glorious since I was in the honeymoon phase, I'm making 75k + bonus + rrsp matching, have great work life balance, and a great manager, I felt like I made it in life. But now that I'm 8 months in and no longer living life on survival mode, I'm remembering the ambitions I had when I started my CS degree of becoming a SWE and eventually working at a big Tech company, and I realize that I don't just want to settle at my new job at the bank. The version of me 2 years ago would be really happy with where I am now, but the version of me 6 years ago would be disappointed.

Also I know it sounds overconfident, but I already feel like I know everything there is to know in my BSA job at the bank. My team is responsible for doing configuration of our software for new client implementations, test planning, and a good bit of manual QA. This does involve some coding as parts of the configuration require writing scripts, and also I write SQL queries for validation/troubleshooting, but it is honestly nothing too complex. In 8 months, I genuinely know how to do majority of the role, and my manager trusts me more than some coworkers that have been in this kind of role for years. I just can't imagine doing this for 10+ years like many of coworkers have been doing, I crave working on more complex projects/problems during my 9-5. I also want to work with people much smarter than me to grow, and I don't think that kind of environment exists in BSA world in banks. My manager and lead are so incredibly intelligent, but then half of my other coworkers just make me wonder how they ever got the job.

Overall, a SWE role is really the only thing I feel like would give me what I'm looking for in my career, but I don't know if it's too late as it's been almost 3 years since I graduated and I have no SWE experience. So I guess I'm here to ask if people think it's still possible to make the transition and if you have any tips. Let's say I become amazing at Leetcode questions 6 months from now, do I have a shot, or is it very very low? Of course the hard part would be getting an interview. I suppose my other option would be trying to go the PM route, but being a PM just does not excite.

I know that AI has changed the role tremendously and that the SWE job market is more volatile as ever, but I just don't want to let go of this dream.