Hi I am a non CS major hired into a fast paced, date driven, high performing team as an SDE II. I am underperforming pretty badly due to gaps in my CS fundamentals and not being able to handle the workload given to me. I am looking for some guidance/ mentorship on how I can close these gaps. I know this will be an issue for me no matter where I work as a SWE. Maybe I should have sought mentorship sooner but better late than never I guess.feel free to dm me if you're in the bay area (Mountain View)
What was your major? I have no idea what your financial status is, but it may be better to resign than be fired. People spend years learning how to be an engineer, I don’t know if you can be mentored into picking it up before you get an IR I truly am sorry friend
I have an IR now. My manager isnt being too flexivle either. I asked for lighter tasks load and he says this is the lightrst he can give for an SDE II. Hes not lineant with the deadlines on these tasks either. I don't even have the time to prepare for interviews and seek out an external opportunity.
I say this not to be flip - I’m trying to help you. You won’t survive this no matter what. You should ask your boss if a Voluntary Separation Agreement (VSA) is possible, if not, just put 2 weeks in and go (if you can afford it). Otherwise you will be fired next Connect time. You are not allowed 2 IRs in a row (someone correct me if I’m wrong on this, I have heard this). It’s all about getting out, saving face, and moving on. And leaving on your own accord will look better than getting fired (however, you wouldn’t get unemployment).
If it helps, you should stop looking at your underperformance as a result of your gaps in CS fundamentals. Instead, start looking at it as lack of practical experience. If you chase silly requirements like “a strong CS background”, you’re never going to win because half the shit you learn during your CS education won’t be thought about unless you’re interviewing (it’s a shame, but it is what it is). You’ll never close the gaps because there are WAY too many areas to study. Work on developing intuition instead. Try working on side projects and breaking things. Over-engineer those side projects. Rinse. Repeat.
What are the struggles? Tell us in depth. We will respond.
Is this your first job? It shouldn't be unless you have a PhD. If it's not your first job, how did you perform in your last job? How different was it?
No not first job. In my last job it was super easy and repititive (code money) work. Because there was a high concentration of non CS folks on thw team the tech lead would take on a lot of the "complicated" stuff as he had a CS background
You should really get over the whole “CS background” thing.
Ok, so it might be safe to say that your actual level is 59, if you didn't grow to sde2 in your last job. It's hard to survive this. How long until the next time you might get an IR? Network and OO stuff are very fundemental, if you spend your time learning those now, you might not have enough time to do the actual job. Is there a way to work around your day to day jobs without understanding these deeply? That's your best chance
I basically quit that job and learned as much CS as I could in a year. I learnt the stuff id need to know to pass an interview and some basic systems design. I figured if I know rhis stuff the company will give me opportunities to close the remaining gaps which meet their needs via training courses. But this team doesnt have that at all. Learning on the job is also tough because thw team is very date drive n and small (4 people including me)
Your problem is not CS foundation, you need work experience to know how to work on large code bases, break down the problems to smaller pieces, prioritize tasks, etc. It's hard to pick these up in small fast paced teams, but if you can, it's the fastest you can grow. I think you need to manage stress and put long hours, even work in weekends, if that's what it takes. Have you considered that? How many hours a week you work?
Thats what I am doing (to the point where I am burnes out ans might have to take off time anyway for stress anxiety).
It sounda like the only way to survive this is to resign. I am now worried that two gaps on my resume will hurt me. Although the first one I built some apps in Androis and could spin it as tried to do a startup. Any HM out here who can comment?
I’d say pick a couple or udemy or coursera courses and go through them every night right up until bed. These really are great resources and some can get you to an intermediate level. I’ve built a career out of them. Learn it then apply it. Don’t go easy on yourself
How did you get an interview in the first place?
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Time to go down to 59 bro 😢...
Apparently that's not an option and my manager says I am not even performing as well as the l59 on my team :(
If your manager said that to you, time to update your resume.