I came of age in the industry when there was little distinction (python guy since 2004 or so). That provides many pros and cons.<p>The more you know broadly, the smarter you’ll sound. And generally, you will tend to be more useful and fulfilled.<p>If you want a career that is focused, you have to choose a focus. I’ve struggled with that. You need a broad base of knowledge to be good at understanding all things, and how they connect.<p>But eventually someone needs a lightbulb changed, and I’m testing the grounding of a nearby lightswitch while on the phone with a contractor about shielding noise from the antiquated home stereo system.<p>Edit: I should probably mention explicitly.<p>Investing in TensorFlow or CUDA is one thing. Investing in certain ML techniques or modeling domains another—and python yet another—<p>Systems and general engineering is a completely messier enchilada. You still get paid!<p>So. I guess. Do better than I. Choose a scale. It’s impossible to focus on everything unless that’s just an impulse you’ve got :)
I will add that certain SWE fields rely upon and interact heavily with DS and for anyone wanting to make the switch, this is a natural "in".<p>Any company with a rigorous approach to product development or even SRE will rely heavily on metrics. The ability to create, maintain, monitor, transform, understand and reason about those metrics is invaluable. To decide what to work on and the quantify your contribution, the ability to effectively run experiments is invaluable. This will naturally fit into a structured product management cycle.<p>This will be a way more natural fit than, say, "purer" software development (eg writing device drivers).<p>So much of successful software engineering is not just how to do something but deciding what to do (and not do).
I was hoping for more advice for those pursuing this transition, but it was more just an account of Google's incredible support for his wish to change careers. He never mentions his employer by name, but I think it'd be helpful to point this out. Those of us on the outside (I and a few other DS's I know are doing this) are spending 6 months or more grinding leetcode and studying system design, doing mock interviews, and applying to hundreds of jobs. So it can be much more painful if you don't have an employer that holds your hand (and pays you) through this entire transition.
Hey everyone, OP here -- thanks for reading or discussing.<p>Curious if anyone else has switched from data science to software engineering, or has thoughts on comparing the two as a career choice. I'm all ears!
Sorry for the tangent, but medium is so bad. Can’t read content without installing the app or logging in. Part of the reason I stopped writing on medium and jumped to Substack.