Becoming a Software Engineer at 38
Long story short I’m very tired of working in sales. I changed careers into sales about 7 years ago, and I have done well in SaaS/PaaS sales. I’m just tired of chasing quotas and I don’t have any real desire to go into leadership as I don’t like sales people much either. I’m actually more introverted than most sales people, but I turn it on for work. I know I will converse with people regularly as an engineer as well. Sales is just another level though. SWE is probably one of the only fields in tech that makes as much as sales people in tech. That isn’t my motivation, but it’s nice to know I won’t have to curb my lifestyle too much, if at all. I am technically inclined and believe I could make this transition. I’m going to take a course online as well as consider an actual degree online. Just curious if I will face any real challenges at my age. I look younger than I am. I figure these days if you’re good it probably won’t matter that much. And if for some reason I can’t hack it I can always call back on something in-between, like sales engineer / solutions consultant. #engineering #software #swe
I made the change at 46. The only place where it is an issue is startups. They tend to want young, active types who look good in photos.
No one cares about your age. Most mid tier companies just want people who they like and are competent.
You are good. I made the change from a sales to Software engineer 5 years ago and even promoted once as software engineer.
Out of curiosity have you considered solutions engineer/ solutions architect?
I'm around your age. So much of tech has changed since I started working that any new tech is just a few years old. So your transferable skills are not the coding skills with a language or a framework albeit big picture thinking and ability to solve problems, and ability to see patterns. You will be absolutely fine. But you'll have to start as an entry level engineer. Those salaries probably won't match your years of tech sales salaries. Happy to chat in detail if you want. Just DM me.
My dad made a career change at 50. He is not a swe but in a technical role (testing, security, etc). It's definitely possible.
Haven't faced any age challenges that I know of. I switched in my 30s and doing an swe apprenticeship at a FAANG company currently. I did face challenges trying to get my first tech job, which is why I took the apprenticeship route.
did it recently at same age. all good if you have the chops. never felt weird about age in interviews except at one place.
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