Software Engineer Career Progression 0-2y Junior 2-5 Senior 5+ Up to you to define After ~5y, it's easy to get lost. There's a huge amount of ambiguity in tha

Software Engineer Career Progression 0-2y Junior 2-5 Senior 5+ Up to you to define After ~5y, it's easy to get lost. There's a huge amount of ambiguity in that 5+ range. Most employers want a young Senior. They're the most cost effective. In the US, no matter how old, you can always find work as a Senior, especially if you're willing to work cheap. The problem is not getting stuck there. You may end up pushing yourself and becoming super skilled but never recognized. You may end up complacent and never grow. Either one suits the employers fine as long as they can keep you on cheap. It's really up to you to define. You have to decide for yourself what you want. You need to have the audacity to then put yourself out there and fight for it publicly. You need to have the tenacity to not give up or settle in the face of certain, persistent rejection. The market is not perfectly efficient and it certainly is not fair. It is competitive and indifferent to your personal needs. To a certain degree you need to put yourself out there to learn the game and then commit to playing it. Ideally, along the way you commit to be kinder to others than people were to you.