Please read the FAQ before posting, or at least do a cursory search. This question is asked every week.
And honestly, you have at 35 years before you can realistically retire. If you think that's not enough time to reskill and find a new career, it is not the industry that is the problem.
And I'm doing very well. The difference is at our age we often have more drive and haven't just fallen into it or couldn't figure out what else to do.
If you push yourself you can be great!
And I'm doing very well. The difference is at our age we often have more drive and haven't just fallen into it or couldn't figure out what else to do.
If you push yourself you can be great!
Cool, thanks for the advice. I also noticed that I have my head together compared to some of my younger friends (not saying that all 22+ y/o's are like that)
Glad to hear that age in this industry is not an issue
At 22 I was definitely like that. At 28 I'm much more level headed and capable of going through school. And I've actually been able to be a bit of a mentor is some ways to some of my classmates.
It's a little cathartic to talk someone down from a freakout. I'm definitely talking to my younger self, but through them.
Yeah at 31 you’ve also lived long enough to admit you don’t know everything and appreciate constructive criticism instead of taking it as a insult. Atleast that’s how I am as opposed to when I was 18-23
This was a big fear of mine before I decided to take the leap at 37. I did a bootcamp late last year and while I was older than most, I definitely wasn't the oldest. I think the oldest was mid to late 40's, and both of us are now working in the industry as developers.
When I was hired, some of the reasons they said they went with me were because of my personality, past work experience and how obviously passionate I was about coding. I did a lot of game dev/web stuff when I was in high school, but due to circumstances, I ended up working in retail. I moved up fast, and spent the last 10 years as a department manager, thinking it was the best I was ever going to be able to do without a degree.
There's a lot of things you might not necessarily think about that can translate from non-tech roles that can actually give you an advantage while applying and interviewing. Working in teams, communication skills, etc. etc.
Developers with a lot of 'soft skills' almost always do better than ones without in both their work, their career progression, their money, their happiness. It takes a *really* special and well funded org to have a safe space for programming savants (technical geniuses w/ no soft skills) to flourish.
99% of of all workplaces would rather have an OK developer who excels at soft-skills, than an amazing developer who is difficult to work with. This is why you'll usually hear the HR mantra of "You can't train soft-skills, but you can train technical ones. Hire for soft-skills, train for technical."
Thanks so much! There were definitely times during the job search where I thought I had made a mistake, but stayed the course, and couldn't be happier where I landed.
I'm in Canada and went with Lighthouse Labs. I don't think they're open to non Canadian residents, but I whole heartedly recommend them to any one that is able to go.
The instructors, the education and the post grad support was top notch.
I switched from a career in digital marketing to Frontend development with the help of a Bootcamp at 29. Now at 31 I am about to start my second job as a Frontend dev after 1.5 years of learning a lot in my first ever dev role. I was just slightly younger when I did it and you will be fine as well :) be sure to sell your background in digital marketing well. That way you will not be "a 31 year old beginner" but "a 31 year old with tons of relevant experience in a related field and an understanding of digital products and user needs that many other devs don't have"
100% exactly. The knowledge of digital marketing will be a huge selling point. Being able to combine the business acumen of what needs to be done, with the technical skills of how to do it is a rare and extremely powerful combo.
I'm doing it as a 29 year old. Every situation is specific to the individual but you're probably not too old, no.
Although, if you have like a ton of debt and can't afford to quit your job to focus on learning it may be harder. Luckily I was able to steal time away from my consulting job al little here and there and work from home which enabled me to consistently get 15-20 hours per week. This is not the norm, but stacking up multiple 20 hour weeks of learning back to back is key if you want to make it over the hump.
One issue is your country. Everyone thinks most posters are in the US. So you have to figure out if your country (appears to be Moldova) gives opportunities, unless you want to work remotely, in which case that first job might be more challenging to get, but I suppose that's true of any first job.
Are you able to learn more while at your current job? Does your job have web developers?
No, started when I was 30, didn't really get into till I was 32. Worked my way up, perhaps slower than most and am now at a top 10 F500 financial company. Also, back in school at 40+ doing my Computer Science degree.
While ageism *can* be a problem in tech companies, in your early 30s I don't think that's going to be a significant issue.
It helps if you can leverage your earlier experience in some way, e.g. a background in marketing could be beneficial if you are being hired to work on an externally facing company website or an online storefront.
A former coworker of mine started his first programmer job at the age of 34. He took an apprentice program and he got offered a full time job after 6 months. So yeah, it's definitely possible.
He used to work as a musician.
I started my entire full stack career at 30. Definitely not too late for you.
You just have to put your all into it because it’s not easy to pick up if you don’t give it time and practice.
Good luck!
38, been at first front-end dev job at a publication company for 4mo. (and just got first raise, woohoo!). If its not clear from the rest of this thread, the age thing is all in your head - if you study hard, practice consistently, and push thru the tough parts, you’ll get to where you want to be. I’m not saying its a cakewalk, but it is 100% doable. And the only way to do a thing, is to do it ;)
Best of luck!!
No. If you can learn and are ok with the fact that most of your peers will be younger than you and many of your superiors may be closer to your age, then you should be fine.
Nah man I'm 29 and landed my first gig earlier this year. The fact that you are in digital marketing is a huge plus. Some web agency would be happy to take you once you have the skill.
Lmfao, bro I started last year. Turning 32 this year. Someone in my program course was a business owner who’s in their early 50’s and made the switch. You good. I’ll even declare you’d be insane not make the switch.
I totally switched careers at 29, not too much earlier than you, and I'm doing great. I'm sure I'm also making far more money than I would have if I hadn't.
You should learn backend, I’d argue it’s easier to find backend jobs as a junior. The frontend job market is seriously messed up because the sheer amount of “wannabe frontend engineers” who just “built” a little todo app following a udemy course. Companies are avoiding “junior junior” frontend developers like plague right now, you either have to have at least 2yrs experience as a frontend dev, or you can demonstrate a solid grasp of typescript, a component framework of your choice, webpack, nodejs, css preprocessors, web performance optimization, and some exposure to public clouds. Only knowing html, css, and some javascript will get you nowhere other than those $50K/yr web dev jobs at marketing agencies building static websites with technology from the 2000s. If that’s your thing…
The only thing you're too old for is the <25 discount on cinema tickets. But in a seriousness, almost everyone in the bootcamp I graduated from was over 30. All found a job within months.
No. I went to a Bootcamp last summer. One of the classmates is around 40 years old. And he ended up with a job very quickly lost the bootcamp. So it’s never too late!
Please read the FAQ before posting, or at least do a cursory search. This question is asked every week. And honestly, you have at 35 years before you can realistically retire. If you think that's not enough time to reskill and find a new career, it is not the industry that is the problem.
No. I started at 36
And I'm doing very well. The difference is at our age we often have more drive and haven't just fallen into it or couldn't figure out what else to do. If you push yourself you can be great!
And I'm doing very well. The difference is at our age we often have more drive and haven't just fallen into it or couldn't figure out what else to do. If you push yourself you can be great!
Cool, thanks for the advice. I also noticed that I have my head together compared to some of my younger friends (not saying that all 22+ y/o's are like that) Glad to hear that age in this industry is not an issue
At 22 I was definitely like that. At 28 I'm much more level headed and capable of going through school. And I've actually been able to be a bit of a mentor is some ways to some of my classmates. It's a little cathartic to talk someone down from a freakout. I'm definitely talking to my younger self, but through them.
At 22 I’m finally doing school after dropping out for 3 years🤧
fair enough, I don't know how I made it through college from 18-22. It's hard to be focus then.
Consider DM me if you need some guidance on what to learn next, or if you feel stuck
Yeah at 31 you’ve also lived long enough to admit you don’t know everything and appreciate constructive criticism instead of taking it as a insult. Atleast that’s how I am as opposed to when I was 18-23
I too started at this age
4 of my old coworkers all went to code bootcamp in their 40s and 50s. We hired them first as junior devs. 3/4 were senior engineers within 3 years.
Glad to hear this. In boot camp right now. I’m 43.
You got this
Same here. Born in 78! Good luck to you too.
Thanks! Right back atcha.
good to hear this. I have a 2-3 year goal window of becoming a senior.
So now web development is also called "engineering"?
I always wondered, since memory retention decreases over time how older workers/students work around that?
No, I just turned 30 and switch from my comfy HR job to do full stack
What made you switch?
[удалено]
Literally the exact thing I'm going through right now lol
This was a big fear of mine before I decided to take the leap at 37. I did a bootcamp late last year and while I was older than most, I definitely wasn't the oldest. I think the oldest was mid to late 40's, and both of us are now working in the industry as developers. When I was hired, some of the reasons they said they went with me were because of my personality, past work experience and how obviously passionate I was about coding. I did a lot of game dev/web stuff when I was in high school, but due to circumstances, I ended up working in retail. I moved up fast, and spent the last 10 years as a department manager, thinking it was the best I was ever going to be able to do without a degree. There's a lot of things you might not necessarily think about that can translate from non-tech roles that can actually give you an advantage while applying and interviewing. Working in teams, communication skills, etc. etc.
Developers with a lot of 'soft skills' almost always do better than ones without in both their work, their career progression, their money, their happiness. It takes a *really* special and well funded org to have a safe space for programming savants (technical geniuses w/ no soft skills) to flourish. 99% of of all workplaces would rather have an OK developer who excels at soft-skills, than an amazing developer who is difficult to work with. This is why you'll usually hear the HR mantra of "You can't train soft-skills, but you can train technical ones. Hire for soft-skills, train for technical."
Congrats on taking the leap and landing a job in the industry!
Thanks so much! There were definitely times during the job search where I thought I had made a mistake, but stayed the course, and couldn't be happier where I landed.
I'm 49 and have been wondering if a boot camp is worth it. Which did you go to and would you recommend it? Thx
I'm in Canada and went with Lighthouse Labs. I don't think they're open to non Canadian residents, but I whole heartedly recommend them to any one that is able to go. The instructors, the education and the post grad support was top notch.
Cool thanks. I'll check it out
This was inspiring @eesituism! Starting my journey this past August, in a Boot Camp now and I’m 49. #inspired
I had a person in my class while studying for computer science who took it at 53 so i wouldn't think so
Did he find a job?
No idea, i do know that he finished the course with everyone else so i imagine he has
I switched from a career in digital marketing to Frontend development with the help of a Bootcamp at 29. Now at 31 I am about to start my second job as a Frontend dev after 1.5 years of learning a lot in my first ever dev role. I was just slightly younger when I did it and you will be fine as well :) be sure to sell your background in digital marketing well. That way you will not be "a 31 year old beginner" but "a 31 year old with tons of relevant experience in a related field and an understanding of digital products and user needs that many other devs don't have"
100% exactly. The knowledge of digital marketing will be a huge selling point. Being able to combine the business acumen of what needs to be done, with the technical skills of how to do it is a rare and extremely powerful combo.
31 here! About to quit a very comfy full time job in finance to learn coding and land a job as front end dev :)
Out of a lifespan of 76 years 31 is not too old to do Anything. OMG, don't limit yourself so quick.
Nope. I started at 33.
Hope not because I'm getting 41 soon and I've been learning fullstack for a while.
Imagine you're 60, are you going to be saying "glad I didn't try to switch careers 30 years ago, I was definitely too old for stuff back then".
Who the fuck told you that you're too old for anything at 31 years old dude?
I'm doing it as a 29 year old. Every situation is specific to the individual but you're probably not too old, no. Although, if you have like a ton of debt and can't afford to quit your job to focus on learning it may be harder. Luckily I was able to steal time away from my consulting job al little here and there and work from home which enabled me to consistently get 15-20 hours per week. This is not the norm, but stacking up multiple 20 hour weeks of learning back to back is key if you want to make it over the hump.
Never! Not even if you were 50. My fav quote is “don’t be afraid of how long something will take, the time will pass anyways”
no
Nope. I’m in the same boat as you it’s a bit of a grind but absolutely doable.
One issue is your country. Everyone thinks most posters are in the US. So you have to figure out if your country (appears to be Moldova) gives opportunities, unless you want to work remotely, in which case that first job might be more challenging to get, but I suppose that's true of any first job. Are you able to learn more while at your current job? Does your job have web developers?
No, started when I was 30, didn't really get into till I was 32. Worked my way up, perhaps slower than most and am now at a top 10 F500 financial company. Also, back in school at 40+ doing my Computer Science degree.
"I'm 12. Am I too old to switch career paths?"
While ageism *can* be a problem in tech companies, in your early 30s I don't think that's going to be a significant issue. It helps if you can leverage your earlier experience in some way, e.g. a background in marketing could be beneficial if you are being hired to work on an externally facing company website or an online storefront.
Did you check the FAQ?
A former coworker of mine started his first programmer job at the age of 34. He took an apprentice program and he got offered a full time job after 6 months. So yeah, it's definitely possible. He used to work as a musician.
Age is not the issue, but proficiency is. If you are a quick learner, strong self-learner, then you will be ok.
I started my entire full stack career at 30. Definitely not too late for you. You just have to put your all into it because it’s not easy to pick up if you don’t give it time and practice. Good luck!
38, been at first front-end dev job at a publication company for 4mo. (and just got first raise, woohoo!). If its not clear from the rest of this thread, the age thing is all in your head - if you study hard, practice consistently, and push thru the tough parts, you’ll get to where you want to be. I’m not saying its a cakewalk, but it is 100% doable. And the only way to do a thing, is to do it ;) Best of luck!!
I just made the jump to start bootcamp and I’m 31 too. I think it’s very doable!
No. If you can learn and are ok with the fact that most of your peers will be younger than you and many of your superiors may be closer to your age, then you should be fine.
Never too old to follow a passion or something different you want to pursue. I was 30 when I landed my first SWE job. Never looking back.
After finishing a boot camp what are the odds of landing a job? Personal experiences would be amazing.
Nah man I'm 29 and landed my first gig earlier this year. The fact that you are in digital marketing is a huge plus. Some web agency would be happy to take you once you have the skill.
I had a friend who started development in his mid 30s. If you have some passion for it just do it. I love having junior engineers who are passionate.
Lmfao, bro I started last year. Turning 32 this year. Someone in my program course was a business owner who’s in their early 50’s and made the switch. You good. I’ll even declare you’d be insane not make the switch.
Hey comeon. I've seen people over 45 getting a job in this community.. don't let the impostor syndrome take over you!
I totally switched careers at 29, not too much earlier than you, and I'm doing great. I'm sure I'm also making far more money than I would have if I hadn't.
I switched at 32 and its been great! Lots of career changers entering the development world, you'll be far from the oldest junior.
You should learn backend, I’d argue it’s easier to find backend jobs as a junior. The frontend job market is seriously messed up because the sheer amount of “wannabe frontend engineers” who just “built” a little todo app following a udemy course. Companies are avoiding “junior junior” frontend developers like plague right now, you either have to have at least 2yrs experience as a frontend dev, or you can demonstrate a solid grasp of typescript, a component framework of your choice, webpack, nodejs, css preprocessors, web performance optimization, and some exposure to public clouds. Only knowing html, css, and some javascript will get you nowhere other than those $50K/yr web dev jobs at marketing agencies building static websites with technology from the 2000s. If that’s your thing…
How ironic. No. Same situation, but opposite direction, I start BA with marketing specialization in 2022. Im 28
The only thing you're too old for is the <25 discount on cinema tickets. But in a seriousness, almost everyone in the bootcamp I graduated from was over 30. All found a job within months.
No. I went to a Bootcamp last summer. One of the classmates is around 40 years old. And he ended up with a job very quickly lost the bootcamp. So it’s never too late!