Viable Paths outside of CS? Sales? Trades?

[nicksaiz65]

I've hit my limit and I am basically sick and tired of Computer Science. It does pay well, but...

The horrible job markets. Having to study every second or your skills are outdated. Office politics. The constant threat of layoffs. Having to do personal projects on your own time on GitHub(work outside of work.) Leetcode. The multi-round interview gauntlets.

I was wondering if there was another path I could take that pays well (without going into boatloads of student debt) or if I should just suck it up and deal with it.

I had wondered if sales or a trade of some sort would be viable. Basically, just looking for alternative career options or deciding if I should just live with it since my degree is in CS.

 

[SW15]

The job market in 2025 is brutal in most office work type fields.

I don't recommend in most cases to get sales rep jobs. Sales rep jobs have a high failure rate. Corporate marketing is also a lousy path. Marketers get laid off all the time and often for the flimsiest reasons.

Sales and Marketing are complementary disciplines and the 2 worst disciplines for job security in white collar work. It's amazing that you are making these comments from Computer Science, a safer discipline.

It's difficult to transition into the trades after completing a bachelor's degree. You are young enough still to do a trade, but it would have been better had you trained in your teens/early 20s to do plumbing, electrical work, or any other trade.

You're likely stuck in CS.

 

[nicksaiz65]

The job market in 2025 is brutal in most office work type fields.

I don't recommend in most cases to get sales rep jobs. Sales rep jobs have a high failure rate. Corporate marketing is also a lousy path. Marketers get laid off all the time and often for the flimsiest reasons.

Sales and Marketing are complementary disciplines and the 2 worst disciplines for job security in white collar work. It's amazing that you are making these comments from Computer Science, a safer discipline.

It's difficult to transition into the trades after completing a bachelor's degree. You are young enough still to do a trade, but it would have been better had you trained in your teens/early 20s to do plumbing, electrical work, or any other trade.

Hmmm.. yeah, I figured. I'm basically stuck and I just have to live with it while taking precautions about the job market.

I disagree about Computer Science being a safe field. The layoffs are currently out of control. Microsoft, Amazon, Meta, and others are cutting tens of thousands of employees. Government isn't much better with 20K employees being laid off overnight. I think you could argue that it is currently worse than private sector. The whole market is brutal.

So it looks like the answer is just the standard "6 month emergency fund, always have a side hustle."

I just wonder if I would have been better off in a different field doing something else. The "learn to code" influencers conveniently left all of this out lol.

 

[BackInTheGame78]

I haven't done a personal project outside of work in 10 years or more...

Sounds like you work for a company that has poor culture and you have some beliefs that simply aren't true.

 

[BackInTheGame78]

Hmmm.. yeah, I figured. I'm basically stuck and I just have to live with it while taking precautions about the job market.

I disagree about Computer Science being a safe field. The layoffs are currently out of control. Microsoft, Amazon, Meta, and others are cutting tens of thousands of employees. Government isn't much better with 20K employees being laid off overnight. I think you could argue that it is currently worse than private sector. The whole market is brutal.

So it looks like the answer is just the standard "6 month emergency fund, always have a side hustle."

I just wonder if I would have been better off in a different field doing something else. The "learn to code" influencers conveniently left all of this out lol.

Part of the reason is because those companies drastically over hired for many years.

Get in with a bank or health care provider and you are golden.

 

[Chow Mein]

I work in IT engineering (heavily dependent on coding and scripting.). If you aren’t at risk of being laid off, there is added pressure of the field being outsourced to India at a fraction of the cost.

I strongly believe everyone should get their feet wet in sales to see if it’s a fit. A lot of money to be earned with the freedom of lifestyle.

 

[BackInTheGame78]

I work in IT engineering (heavily dependent on coding and scripting.). If you aren’t at risk of being laid off, there is added pressure of the field being outsourced to India at a fraction of the cost.

I strongly believe everyone should get their feet wet in sales to see if it’s a fit. A lot of money to be earned with the freedom of lifestyle.

Which always turns out to be 3x more expensive in the long run because they write garbage spaghetti code that is mishmashed together and then they have to pay American Engineers to rewrite it from scratch 5 years later once they realize it's a maintenance timebomb and there is no way to salvage it...

But companies never seem to learn from their or other companies prior mistakes. Been involved in 3 rewrites from scratch at different companies stemming from offshoring the work.

 

[Clockwerk50]

I’d recommend going into sales, as long as it’s B2B.

In my company, for example, you’re assigned a portfolio and a region with multiple accounts. Your job is to build relationships with the buyers, support them when they’re stressed, and handle issues as they arise. Some buyers can be *******s so you have to hug their balls a little bit. You’ll also follow up on unpaid invoices, manage promotions, and resolve account-related concerns such as pricing or technical details.

There’s also a business development aspect, you’ll be expected to bring in new accounts, which often means winning them over from competitors.

In return, the company provides a company car, insurance, gas, and opportunities to attend workshops, trade shows, and conferences.

You’re a young guy with time and energy to run quotes, meet clients, and be on the move. Expect to work around 50–60 hours a week. That said, some challenges are outside your control. For example, to boost revenue, my company frequently raises prices, and as a sales rep, it’s your job to explain and justify those increases to customers and keep them around.

At its core, a lot of sales is like seduction, building trust, reading emotions, and knowing when to push or pull back.

 

[nicksaiz65]

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The job market in 2025 is brutal in most office work type fields.

​

I don't recommend in most cases to get sales rep jobs. Sales rep jobs have a high failure rate. Corporate marketing is also a lousy path. Marketers get laid off all the time and often for the flimsiest reasons.

Sales and Marketing are complementary disciplines and the 2 worst disciplines for job security in white collar work. It's amazing that you are making these comments from Computer Science, a safer discipline.

It's difficult to transition into the trades after completing a bachelor's degree. You are young enough still to do a trade, but it would have been better had you trained in your teens/early 20s to do plumbing, electrical work, or any other trade.

You're likely stuck in CS.

I’m realizing that a couple of specific things are burning me out.

Every time I want to get a new job(or get laid off) the amount of studying that I have to do to get ready to take an interview is insanity. It burns up so much energy. It’s almost impossible to get those big sessions in because life won’t stop just because you want a new job.

Point is, if you wait until you are laid off or want a new job to start studying, it’s way too late. It’s disruptive to other life stuff. You can’t cram months of studying into a couple weeks.

Even 15-30 mins a day would be good.

You’ve mentioned that a lot of my issues have come from insufficient savings. This is probably another one of them. If I had more substantial savings, then I really wouldn’t care about layoffs like that. Interviews drag out so long these days that they say you might want closer to a year of savings than 6 months.

These are the things I’m thinking we can do about the bad CS Market right now.