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I'm sure that's definitely a factor, but I think there are a number of other variables in play (perceived or real). I think there's a tendency to think that in

I'm sure that's definitely a factor, but I think there are a number of other variables in play (perceived or real). I think there's a tendency to think that in a younger developer you might find more passion, optimism (or at least lack of cynicism), open-minded approaches to problem solving, etc. than in an older one. I think also compared to a number of other industries, the premium put on experience isn't always valued very highly. I think it's increasingly easy to look at successes from little companies full of scrappy recent graduates and wonder why you need someone with 10+ years on your team... For the record I've got 11+ or so years of experience and am rapidly approaching 'middle aged' :|

Swizec 16y ago
An important point to note here is that especially when it comes to programming, a recent grad != zero experience. Personally I'm not even a graduate yet (1.5 years to go -ish), but I can already cite 5 to 7 years of experience in the industry depending on how stringent you want to be and at least 12 years of general coding experience. I would wager a lot of those "scrappy young companies chock full of enthusiastic fresh graduates" were in a similar position with people who actually had a lot of experience despite being fresh grads.
- famousactress 16y ago
  Oh, totally agree. Didn't mean to suggest that grads have no experience. Plenty of them have loads of great work under their belts by the time they leave school.
michaelcampbell 16y ago
You are correct on all counts, and I certainly didn't mean that the reason I gave was the only one. I think, in retrospect, I should have worded it differently. When I said "experience", I certainly meant what everyone thought it meant, but I think I also just meant more time on the job. More time working leads to higher salaries on average, even without "experience" coming into play.

Swizec 16y ago

An important point to note here is that especially when it comes to programming, a recent grad != zero experience. Personally I'm not even a graduate yet (1.5 years to go -ish), but I can already cite 5 to 7 years of experience in the industry depending on how stringent you want to be and at least 12 years of general coding experience. I would wager a lot of those "scrappy young companies chock full of enthusiastic fresh graduates" were in a similar position with people who actually had a lot of experience despite being fresh grads.

famousactress 16y ago
Oh, totally agree. Didn't mean to suggest that grads have no experience. Plenty of them have loads of great work under their belts by the time they leave school.

michaelcampbell 16y ago

You are correct on all counts, and I certainly didn't mean that the reason I gave was the only one. I think, in retrospect, I should have worded it differently. When I said "experience", I certainly meant what everyone thought it meant, but I think I also just meant more time on the job. More time working leads to higher salaries on average, even without "experience" coming into play.