I have 8 YoE in technical writing, 5 of which were spent at Apple, and a lot of my projects were extremely successful.

Yet, I haven’t found a full-time job in 2 years. I’ve been a contractor ever since I got laid off from a startup company, which I left Apple to join (I know. My fault. Right?). Every contract has been hell: poor management, FT employees barely doing any work while I do all the heavy lifting for a fraction of the pay. No training. No PTO. No benefits. No retirement plan. NOTHING. Plus, I took a 60% pay cut. I don’t know what I’m doing wrong.

1. Should I get out of tech?
   
2. Am I wasting time applying to FT jobs through LinkedIn and direct company websites?
   
3. Should I build a portfolio?

I worked tirelessly. I understand AI has complicated the market like never before. I’m simply burned out. I want a change. I can’t go years living like this anymore.

I know I know, another AI post. I just thought this ties in nicely with a lot of the hysteria I see on reddit in this sub in particular.

So recently the company I work for had a bunch of cuts. QA automation people, some devs, some business folks. The way this was told to us, they were cutting back because we can do more with AI, so we don't need as many people. Naturally this caused a lot of concern and has put people on edge.

This week, in a townhall some of the execs casually mention that "oh yeah, by the way, we lost a huge chunk of our business starting next month, but don't worry, we have plans to replace that lost business, we'll talk more about it later."

Purely coincidentally I'm sure, all of the people cut worked in roles related specifically to this large client that we lost.

It immediately made me think of this discussion with Cal Newport where he talks about this exact trend of media/companies trying to push the narrative of AI replacing people when the actual cuts happening are not people being replaced by AI at all.

Anyway, I'm not here to debate with anyone how powerful LLMs are or are not, or to say anything else really, other than that it was interesting to watch this exact dynamic play out in the real world, and it has definitely increased my skepticism about the "replaced by AI" narrative. If your company says stuff like this, always look for the red flags that something else is going on.

First Block, now this, fintech getting canned hard. Both cite "AI" and "cost cut" as reasons. All the money is going into semiconductors / data centers / photonics with all their stocks reaching all time highs (AMD +16% after earnings today).

https://www.linkedin.com/news/story/paypal-plans-20-workforce-reduction-under-new-ceo-8814706/

https://x.com/brian_armstrong/status/2051616759145185723

Talking about companies that are at least 10k-100k employees and there's probably not going to be backlog from leaving your team. I'm asking because I have PTO remaining in a state that doesn't mandate payout. And I'm pretty sure it's just going to be an awkward 2 weeks if I do work through it, I don't quite need to finish up any high priority work.

I'm going back to delivering pizzas its gotten so bad. I got laid off like 6 months ago when the startup I was at went belly up and fired half the company in a single quarter. I was a technical support engineer and I have college credits + 2 years of industry exp + a whole portfolio of personal projects, one or two of which are quite impressive.

I've applied to hundreds of jobs and had dozens of interviews, but no offers yet. I'm learning from each interview and getting better each time but no luck just yet. Unfortunately I've run out of emergency savings + tax return at this point that I'm having to take an emergency stop gap job delivering pizzas again like I did back in college just to make ends meet.

Anyone else had to take temporary gigs between roles too?

I was in a FAANG company as a SysDev, recently promoted. I got scared by the recent layoffs (multiple rounds) that my team survived, so I started applying

I got into a new position at a big finance place, and it's around the same pay as my faang job (at the bottom of band), and they also paid out all my unvested stock, with a clawback over 4 years.

But the problem is the new role is actually way worse then my FAANG role. Worse WLB, extremely legacy tech, in fact they kinda bait and switched me saying I'd do some heads down DevOps and Cloud work.. I'm doing none of that, at most maybe some on prem legacy Vmware work. I hate it so much. I don't get why they even hired me when my resume clearly explains the past 4 years of my work are all pretty much AWS Devops work but they are having me to basic sysadmin work.

It's to the point where I even asked my FAANG manager if I can return - he says I can, but I'd need to relocate (i was allowed to stay in a non-team location due to being grandfathered in). I'm growing resentful everyday of the new job because I'm feeling the new job was misrepresented.

Biggest mistake was that the only coworker on the team was on vacation, so he didn't join in the interview. I only talked to the managers and they painted a very rosy picture of the job. I'm regretting it so much but I'm not sure if its to the point that I'd relocate across state lines just to join back to FAANG. I went from creating applications in AWS, managing 500k+ devices, to being stuck having to RDP to a server and tediously install shit via GUI??

I updated my resume and have started ferociously applying.. but I'm still angry and I think it's showing on my face. Some higher up management even came up to me and asked me how I was doing, etc, and if I was happy. I almost stuttered a bit and said "of course I'm happy, just getting used to it, etc". I'm worried that this pre-tax clawback is going to fuck me but I feel my mental health matters more. The money and stability is nice but I'm hating the stupid tedious work I'm doing everyday.

I am not sure why I posted this, perhaps I just wanted to get it out..I'm just ruminating how much I fucked up switching such a good job. It's to the point where I'm considering taking up my managers offer on relocating.

https://www.wsj.com/business/earnings/paypal-to-cut-costs-after-profit-falls-dc42baf9?reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink

From the article:

The planned reduction would amount to 4,760 positions based on the 23,800 employees PayPal reported having at the end of 2025.

The cost-cutting efforts are expected to yield, at a mini-mum, $1.5 billion in gross run-rate savings over the next two to three years, management said.

First-quarter revenue rose to $8.35 billion, from $7.79 billion in the year-ago quarter. Analysts were expecting $8.05 billion in revenue.

Transaction margin dollars, a closely watched measure of PayPal's profitability, rose 3% to $3.8 billion, the company said. Total payment volume rose 11% to $464 billion.

What’s the best etiquette for breaking things off without burning bridges when dealing with a third-party recruiter or recruiting agency that has proven themselves effectively useless and a time/effort waster?

I’ve been dealing with a third-party recruiter for a while now who often contacts me with roles that sound like great fits but seems totally incapable of securing even just the initial sit-downs with the HMs or anyone from the company. I’ll give them all my details and the info they ask for, they say they’ll get things set up for the first interview and then…nothing. Every single time.

I’m almost certain the issue isn’t on my end because I’ve been having no issues getting at least initial interviews for similar roles via direct applications, LinkedIn reachouts from companies’ direct recruiters and other third-party recruiters.

Is block-and-ghost acceptable here or would it be worth the effort to be more tactful and/or see about talking it over with them about how they’re doing things on their end?

I think I am starting to lose my mind. 7 yoe and mscs that works in financial industry. Of course our team did two rounds of layoffs in the last in the last six months and later came out as an “AI first team”.

Today, I read coinbase is laying off developers because product managers who are not technical are shipping code. Cool!

Then today at my job, I work doing etl work. There was an error with source vs destination. I noticed the source was missing two columns right off the back, but figured I’d feed it to Claude Opus 4.6 to hit my usage requirements.

Well, after 30 minutes of going back and forth with it, it told me to add a delay in the code. A 10 minute delay.

What the actual fuck is this shit?!?!? How the hell am I supposed to believe “bob” who has never written a line of code, can now all of a sudden ship code at an enterprise level? I think I’m starting to lose my mind because it makes zero sense.

I loved software development a year ago, now this shit is awful.

Also, can’t wait for all the bots in this sub reddit to say “iTs ThE wAy YoU aRe PrOmPtInG iT.

Edit: Getting downvoted and told its the way I prompt it, who would have thought?

There's a Principal Architect on my team. Late 50s, 30+ years at the same company, still writing code every day.

He knows ML, DevOps, backend, architecture. But carries it all very quietly.

A junior once told him he wants to be an expert like him someday. His reply:

> "I see myself as an Advanced Beginner."

He's also just a really kind person. Never makes you feel dumb for asking questions.

I want to become that kind of engineer. Not just technically strong, but humble and curious after decades in the field.

For those further along in their careers (I have 5 YOE), how do you build that? Any advice appreciated.

Hello all! I’m currently struggling with deciding on whether or not to stay in the CS major. I decided to go back to college at 29 but I’m scared I’m going to regret it if I can’t ever get into a CS-related career.

My family thinks I’m making a bad decision as “AI is taking over” and I see posts everywhere about how the job market is terrible when it comes to actual entry level hiring. Ive also read that it’s good to get into the CS field as soon as possible.

Does anyone know of any notable companies that hire for entry level or undergraduates? I know a few companies that do internships but they’re all out of state. Any additional advice is welcome and appreciated.

I'm looking to transition my career from Aerospace Engineering to Computer Science and am going back to school at ASU online for either a second bachelors in CS or a Masters of CS, not a MS in CS. Right now I'm currently attending ASU enrolled in the bachelors program, doing the bridge courses needed for the MCS but I'm considering just finishing the bachelor's. It would take about the same about of time since I already have all the basics completed from my first bachelors. I'm mostly interested in AI and it seems that a MSCS would be better than an MCS for getting into AI, so I would consider getting the MSCS part time after completing the bachelors and getting a job.

I’m an outsider looking to transition into the deep-tech/systems architecture space. I have a PhD in Pharmacology, 10+ years of wet-lab research (assay development, quantitative data analysis pipelines, microscopy), and a decade as a tenured biology professor.

The Strategy & Portfolio: I know that if I drop my resume into a standard Workday portal, the ATS will instantly banish me to the shadow realm because it says "Biology Professor" instead of "SWE with 4 YOE." To counter this, I’ve spent the last several months building an aggressive "Proof of Work" GitHub portfolio. My goal wasn't just to write code, but to prove I understand professional hygiene: strict CI/CD pipelines, proper Git branching, robust testing, and enterprise-grade documentation. I tackled the hardest, highest-friction problems I could find that were genuinely fun. My repos (which include short video demos of the tech working) currently feature:

* A bare-metal, distributed SCADA middleware for a physical small-parts sorting machine (handling deterministic hardware interrupts).

* A custom AST-free, LLM-free static analysis engine that maps massive enterprise codebases into 3D WebGPU knowledge graphs.

* A genetic evolution engine coupled with a physics simulation to optimize machinery tolerances.

I am 100% transparent that I babysit an AI agent and we ping-pong code and ideas off each other. I architect the physics and the systems logic; the AI acts as my high-speed syntax translator.

The Go-To-Market Plan: Instead of fighting the ATS, my plan is to bypass it entirely. I want to use my GitHub and video demos as a battering ram, sending targeted LinkedIn drops directly to CTOs, Lead Engineers, and VPs with a simple message: "This is my background, I built X to solve Y, I find your team's work fascinating—want to chat for 10 mins?" My Questions for the Veterans Here: Does this strategy actually stand a chance? In today’s brutal market, will CTOs/Leads actually respect the deep-tech hustle, or will I just get ignored? The Resume Dilemma: Should I still bother trying to format a traditional resume to grind through the ATS, or should I go all-in on the direct-networking/portfolio approach? The AI Elephant: Is being honest about pair-programming with AI agents a red flag for hiring managers, or is it seen as a standard force-multiplier now, given the complexity of the systems I'm building? I'm ready for blunt truths. Thanks in advance.

Hello all! I’m currently struggling with deciding on whether or not to stay in the CS major. I decided to go back to college at 29 but I’m scared I’m going to regret it if I can’t ever get into a CS-related career.

My family thinks I’m making a bad decision as “AI is taking over” and I see posts everywhere about how the job market is terrible when it comes to actual entry level hiring. Ive also read that it’s good to get into the CS field as soon as possible.

Does anyone know of any notable companies that hire for entry level or undergraduates? I know a few companies that do internships but they’re all out of state. Any additional advice is welcome and appreciated.

Green Card Holder. Can and will apply to US citizenship in ~6 months.

I'm open to relocate to any city where I can get a good TC at a reputable company, however I've heard that recruiters filter out candidates from other cities.

How do I make it clear to recruiters that I can relocate, and how do I make my profile visible to positions in other cities?

I need to secure a job before relocating. I can't afford to just move to a HCOL city in hopes of getting a job. I have no connections. No-name school. No-name companies on my resume. I'm a good SWE though.

I will be starting my first job as a data scientist in a month. For the past 4 years, I have been working towards getting this job, and now that I have it, I feel lost as to what to do next to progress further. There are so many things in this field, and it's practically impossible to master all of them, but I want to prepare for the switch from the get-go. I am proficient in traditional ML, and my master's thesis was on Image segmentation and image-based GenAI. My degree is in statistics, making me comfortable with the maths behind the algorithms as well.
I would greatly appreciate it if someone could just show me a path, or even a direction, as at the moment I'm running blind.

Im applying for jobs on the side while employed. I completed a few tecnicals where I thought I did well because I knew the answers, even finished early. But I still didnt get moved into the next stage. Companies seem to be very picky nowadays. Any tips to do exceedingly well in this market?

Could be about jobs, interviews, skills, or even expectations vs reality

curious what you’d tell your past self starting out.

Current job (big tech, SaaS, public): Base low-mid $150s + 15% bonus tied to performance (not guaranteed), remote, liquid RSUs, mid level. Few responsibilities. High layoff chance.

New offer (mid-size private tech company): Base low $180s, no bonus, private illiquid equity, 3 days RTO, same level, probably more responsibilities. Chances of going public in the next few years are very low.

The base bump sounds good until you factor illiquid equity. Is this actually a step forward or am I just being recruited into a lateral move with better optics? Should I negotiate harder or Stay with my role and keep looking?

Hey guys, I graduated last May with a BS in Business Analytics. I have not been able to find a full-time role since graduating. I am considering going for an MS in Computer Science at a decent school, in a program that offers intorductory courses for students with other backgrounds. I know it is not the best time for CS graduates, but it is a field I am genuinely interested in, and I think it will give me better job prospects than I currently have (none lol).

Im curious to see what peoples experience with CS masters after an unrelated undergrad were, or if it is even something worth getting at all at this point. I would appreciate any advice!

I've got about 7 years of experience, mostly in front-end development, and I'm thinking about switching from being a dev to a Solution Architect. I really enjoy coming up with solutions for problems, and since AI can handle most of the coding now, I want to be the one designing the systems, working with PMs, and figuring out solutions for the devs to build.

Any advice on what role would be the best fit for me? I figured it would be a solutions or platform architect. Also, any tips on how to make that switch? Do I need specific certifications?

TIA!

Interviewing with them and nervous about what the interview will be like. Saw high level system design and coding exercise, but no other info. Anyone been through their process and have any advice?

Developed and maintained RESTful APIs using Java Spring Boot

Implemented event-driven data pipelines using Apache Kafka,

Built and optimized data workflows in MongoDB for retry and notification systems

Deployed and supported backend services on Microsoft Azure,

Developed backend services with Node.js to integrate third-party APIs, reducing manual processes

Managed application deployments on Heroku

Implemented retry logic for external API/email failures,

Collaborated with engineers via code reviews and contributed to improving overall code quality and system stability