From Software Engineer to Data Engineer: Double Your Salary

Thinking about making a move from software engineering to data engineering? You’re not alone. Many software engineers are realizing the potential for higher salaries and exciting new challenges in the data world. Let’s explore why this transition is happening and what you can do to make it a reality.

Why Software Engineers Are Flocking to Data Engineering (3 Reasons)

So, why are software engineers making the jump to data engineering in such large numbers? Here are the top three reasons.

Saturation in Software Engineering

Here’s an unpopular opinion: the software engineering field is starting to get a little saturated. It’s becoming increasingly competitive, especially if you’re a recent college graduate. Landing that first software engineering role is tougher than ever because everyone with a computer science degree is vying for the same positions.

Companies are always looking to get more for less. They want candidates with a broader skillset. If you have solid software engineering skills and data skills, you become a much more attractive candidate. Skills like data visualization, SQL, and dashboarding can set you apart in a crowded market. Having these data skills will make you stand out.

Overlapping Job Roles

Software engineering roles are increasingly overlapping with data-centric work. Software engineers aren’t just deploying models anymore. They’re building data-centric cubes and working with cloud platforms. This means they’re generating and dealing with massive amounts of data. They need to sift through it and make sense of it.

As software engineers encounter this trend, they realize there are other positions out there that leverage these skills. Data engineering, cloud engineering, and similar roles offer the opportunity to learn new things and potentially earn more money, especially at companies where these skills are in high demand.

The Impact of AI

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve heard about AI. AI is changing the game for everyone, coders and non-coders alike. The best engineers are figuring out how to use AI to write code, deploy models, and speed up development.

Jeff Bezos and Amazon even reported incredible results using AI, achieving massive development time and cost savings. This kind of efficiency might lead to less hiring as processes become more streamlined. Software engineers are aware of this and are exploring other skills they can learn to remain competitive.

3 Steps to Take to Land a Data Engineering Job (In 90 Days or Less)

Ready to make the move? Here are three things you can do right away to prepare yourself for a data engineering job. These steps can be completed in 90 days or less.

Step 1: Personalized Upskilling Plan

The first step is to create a personalized plan to bridge the gap between your current skills as a software engineer and the requirements of a data engineering role. We call it a personalized plan. Forget the master’s degree or expensive certificates. As a software engineer, you can pick up the necessary skills relatively quickly.

Every software engineer has a unique background and skill set. One person might need to focus on SQL, while another needs to learn cloud technologies. Still another might need to learn data modeling and cloud.

Here are some example gaps in skills:

• SQL
• Cloud technologies
• Data modeling
• System design

The good news is that software engineers aren’t usually intimidated by code and technology. You’ve already been working with it for so long. You can likely learn these new skills in a couple of weeks or months. Forget that outdated two-year master’s program. It’s time to focus on targeted learning. You can explore coursework options at Data Engineering Academy’s coursework page.

Step 2: Apply, Apply, Apply (The Power of Volume)

This might sound simple, but it’s a critical step that many people overlook: apply to a ton of jobs. I see software engineers making the mistake of applying to only a handful of jobs and then getting discouraged when they don’t get interviews.

They might apply to 100 jobs over a year and wonder why they aren’t seeing results. The job market has changed. You can’t expect a 50% interview rate anymore. That’s just not realistic.

The key is volume. You need to apply to hundreds, if not thousands, of jobs to increase your chances of landing multiple offers. Spend the time to do it yourself, or even hire a virtual assistant on Upwork to help you.

Let’s reverse engineer the numbers: If you apply to 2,000 jobs and get a 5% interview rate, you’ll have 100 interviews. From those interviews, you’ll likely get multiple job offers. And with multiple offers, you have serious negotiating power. You can potentially increase your compensation by 20-40%. Not applying to enough jobs and failing to negotiate are the biggest mistakes people make.

Step 3: Ace the Interview (Mock Interviews are Key)

Data engineering interviews are a little different from software engineering interviews. While some knowledge of Python, LeetCode, and object-oriented programming is still important, it’s not the only thing.

You need to prepare for data-related mock interviews. This includes data modeling, system design, and ETL (Extract, Transform, Load) product-based interviews.

If you know a data engineer, ask them to do a mock interview with you. Get their feedback. Don’t assume that your software engineering skills fully translate to data engineering interviews. They only cover about 50% of what you need to know.

The good news is that, as a software engineer, you can transition to data engineering relatively quickly because of the overlap in skills. Just make sure you study for those interviews. Check out this complete guide on how to become a data engineer for more information.

Bonus Tip: Negotiate Like a Pro

Software engineers likely already know this, but it’s worth repeating: negotiate your salary. Use those multiple offers to drive up your compensation during the negotiation phase. Negotiation alone can lead to an additional 20% increase in your salary.

Is Data Engineering Right For You?

If you’re a software engineer considering a move to data engineering, aim for a higher salary in the data space. It’s definitely possible!

Experienced tech professionals can often transition to in-demand roles like data engineering and get paid more because of their existing skills and industry knowledge. Companies are often willing to pay a premium for candidates with a strong tech background, even if they’re new to data engineering. You can book a call with the Data Engineering Academy team at Data Engineering Academy to see if they can help.

Why Data Engineering is in Demand Right Now

Companies hiring for data engineering positions often prefer candidates with years of tech experience over recent graduates with data engineering certificates. A tech-heavy background and industry experience are highly valued in the data engineering field.

Recap: 3 Steps to Data Engineering Success

To sum it up, here are the three key steps for software engineers transitioning to data engineering: learn, scale your applications, and do mock interviews. So, what are you waiting for?

Remember that solid preparation with mock interviews and by applying for a higher volume of jobs can improve your chances in the job market.

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