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Is this bootcamp craze and the overall increased media coverage of 'coding' as an easily learned unskilled trade making anyone else consider a career change? I

Is this bootcamp craze and the overall increased media coverage of 'coding' as an easily learned unskilled trade making anyone else consider a career change? I am pushing 40 and the diminishing earning potential, lack of respect, and relentless ageism are really making me wish I'd done something else.

hockeybias 11y ago
Not one bit. I'm 57.
acconrad 11y ago
Indeed that may be true for the most rudimentary programming jobs (HTML/CSS/JS developers come to mind), but not for all. Data science/Stats, AI, ML, HCI...these are highly-specialized disciplines of computer science that require intense study and (as of now) cannot simply be developed over the course of a 12 week camp. If you're looking to future-proof your career, learn all the stuff they don't teach you in boot camps.
morgante 11y ago
I wouldn't worry about the effect of bootcamps and the surge of unqualified programmers. All they do is create even more demand for senior developers to manage them and clean up after their messes. I know it's ridiculous for someone half your age to give advice, but if you're worried about diminishing earning potential, ageism, and lack of respect, consider consulting. Your experience is directly valued and the earning ceiling is much much higher (if it exists at all). I know several 40+ year-old developers who have had tremendous success working as consultants and getting lots of respect from companies which otherwise exclusively employ 20-somethings.
- mgkimsal 11y ago
  You sort of nailed it, but most 40+ somethings need to get out of 'full time employment' status in to consulting or some other more independent status to keep the money and status going up. Not everyone, of course, but that tends to be the trend. The 40+ folks I know who just want to go get a 9-5 coding job seem to have a harder time landing one than the 20 somethings I know.
chejazi 11y ago
The diminishing earning potential means there are more resources capable of fulfilling what role you're performing. Hoping to remain exclusive is not in the best interest of the field, is it? I see relentless ageism as the result of the flood of new computer science talent. It biases recruiter expectations to seek out a certain type of candidate. Your experience as an older programmer is unique here and this could be an important opportunity for you to disrupt the status quo (eg. affect HR.) Regarding lack of respect, I'm assuming you mean respect for the field of Computer Science? I think this is the result of the explosion in industry/applications of programming. Dollars drive attitudes, which has resulted in Ruby on Rails being the pinnacle of many programmers' fascination in computer science, as an example. Not that I dislike Ruby on Rails, of course!

hockeybias 11y ago

Not one bit. I'm 57.

acconrad 11y ago

Indeed that may be true for the most rudimentary programming jobs (HTML/CSS/JS developers come to mind), but not for all. Data science/Stats, AI, ML, HCI...these are highly-specialized disciplines of computer science that require intense study and (as of now) cannot simply be developed over the course of a 12 week camp. If you're looking to future-proof your career, learn all the stuff they don't teach you in boot camps.

morgante 11y ago

I wouldn't worry about the effect of bootcamps and the surge of unqualified programmers. All they do is create even more demand for senior developers to manage them and clean up after their messes. I know it's ridiculous for someone half your age to give advice, but if you're worried about diminishing earning potential, ageism, and lack of respect, consider consulting. Your experience is directly valued and the earning ceiling is much much higher (if it exists at all). I know several 40+ year-old developers who have had tremendous success working as consultants and getting lots of respect from companies which otherwise exclusively employ 20-somethings.

mgkimsal 11y ago
You sort of nailed it, but most 40+ somethings need to get out of 'full time employment' status in to consulting or some other more independent status to keep the money and status going up. Not everyone, of course, but that tends to be the trend. The 40+ folks I know who just want to go get a 9-5 coding job seem to have a harder time landing one than the 20 somethings I know.

chejazi 11y ago

The diminishing earning potential means there are more resources capable of fulfilling what role you're performing. Hoping to remain exclusive is not in the best interest of the field, is it? I see relentless ageism as the result of the flood of new computer science talent. It biases recruiter expectations to seek out a certain type of candidate. Your experience as an older programmer is unique here and this could be an important opportunity for you to disrupt the status quo (eg. affect HR.) Regarding lack of respect, I'm assuming you mean respect for the field of Computer Science? I think this is the result of the explosion in industry/applications of programming. Dollars drive attitudes, which has resulted in Ruby on Rails being the pinnacle of many programmers' fascination in computer science, as an example. Not that I dislike Ruby on Rails, of course!