CSCareerQuestions

1895 readers

1 users here now

A community to ask questions about the tech industry!

Rules/Guidelines

Follow the programming.dev site rules
Please only post questions here, not articles to avoid the discussion being about the article instead of the question

Related Communities

!programming@programming.dev - a general programming community
!no_stupid_questions@programming.dev - general question community
!ask_experienced_devs@programming.dev - for questions targeted towards experienced developers

Credits

Icon base by Skoll under CC BY 3.0 with modifications to add a gradient

founded 2 years ago

MODERATORS

ericjmorey@programming.dev

odium@programming.dev

Does anyone have experience with becoming a Senior Dev "early" (lemmy.world)

submitted 2 weeks ago by python@lemmy.world to c/cs_career_questions@programming.dev

2 comments fedilink hide all child comments

As in, either at an early age or early in their career.
Because I'm 26 with about 3-4 years of experience (maybe 5 if I count my apprenticeship), and my company keeps reiterating how they promote based on skill and knowledge, and not based on age. I know that I fit the soft skill requirements for senior dev on the internal checklist. And I know that I could absolutely handle the 6-week project that potential Seniors are asked to do, because all of my experience is extremely specialized into the exact current field and position I work at.

So I'm playing with the idea of asking to become a senior next year, because I plan on leaving the company and the title would look good on my resume.

Does anyone around here have experience with doing something like that?

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments

[–] graycube@lemmy.world 2 points 2 weeks ago

It doesn't hurt to ask. Before you do, think about how you will handle possible rejection. What is your next step if they say "not yet"? Will you quit on the spot? Will you try to find out why and focus on resolving any shortcomings they highlight? Will you slog on with the rate race and ask again in 6 months?

Besides the title, why do you want the promotion? Is it the increased responsibility? The money? The challenge? To impress your parents? As a reward for your hard work so far?

Lastly, expertise in a niche does not always translate into broader expertise and experience in a field that could make it easier to find new employment or implement a career refresh. The title might not be as helpful as you hope unless you plan on staying in that niche. And of course, locking in a specialization may not mean changing jobs changes much.

These are just things to ponder. There are no wrong answers. If you asked me for the promotion, as your boss, I'd probably ask you these questions before going to bat to get you the title upgrade.