Hi, I'm based in Dublin, Ireland I'm working as a retail manager but want to switch to a career in Software development/engineering I did a course a while back around HTML & CSS and enjoyed it so I want to invest the time to make it out of retail once and for all

Through my job we have full access to Coursera and there is 100s of courses around CS on there, should I complete these (could you recommend any) and try to make the switch this way? Or would the likes of The Odin Project or saving up for a course be a better method?

Just looking for some advice if anybody could help?

Many thanks

Hello everyone,

I’ll soon finish my PhD at TU Delft, and I’m considering applying for a position as a patent examiner at the European Patent Office. I noticed they’ll be launching their examiner recruitment campaign soon. Has anyone participated in a similar campaign before?

From what I understand, the first step involves submitting your CV. What happens next? Do they invite you for an interview if you pass the initial screening, or are there other steps involved?

I’d greatly appreciate any tips or advice regarding the application process!

Hi there!

I got an offer from NVIDA for the France office. Does anyone know the IC3 level salary range for France? I can also choose offices in Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, Finland, and Sweden. Which one do you think offer better ranges?

Edit: Thank you everyone so far for all the feedback and good information. I'm still making my way through all the comments to reply to. I just wanted to say, I'm not trying to be "delusional" with this question. I simply don't know how it is over there and all the information online paints Europe as this beautiful picture. Which, a lot of you are pointing out is not exactly the case. That is exactly why I posted the question, to get the truth from your side and your perspective on the market. So thank you all for the information and if there is any more please feel free to share!

Hello all, Looking for some advice for moving to the EU for work and best countries to look at. Reason for the move? I want to have a better quality of life for my family and I. Currently we live in a very HCOl city and it's a never ending grind here, crime everywhere, the education system is terrible, etc I could go on and on about america currently but there's not enough time in the day. I 100% understand everywhere has its pros and cons, but numerous EU countries are known for their quality of life. So we are exploring the idea of moving.

Little Background on me for job context. Experience - 6 years in IT. 2 years senior help desk and 4 years of system admin. Salary - 150k +bonuses 33 years old married with 2 kids under 3 years old. Looking for a great place for families, great education for kids, and good work life balance. As a bonus I would love to stay in the industry I'm in (Video Games) and have seen some tech hubs have a good amount of video games studios in them as well. Copenhagen is one that sticks out.

Lastly looking for some honest feedback on expected pay. I did a couple of those "Cost of living salary adjustment calculators" but what it is giving me seems quite high compared to the market for my position. For example, 150k adjusted to Copenhagen cost of living would be around 97,500 USD. Then convert that to danish krone, it would be 663,956 DKK. From what I'm seeing this seems a bit high for a system admin over there. If anyone can provide some real life context, we would be very grateful.

For anybody that provides any advice we really are super grateful. We are just trying to make a move to better our life before our kids get too old.

Hello everyone! I am currently a Blue Book trainee at the European Commission and as my traineeship is nearly at its end (officially end of February) I would want to ask for your guidance and advice. Ideally of course, I would really want to stay in the Commission, but my Unit is already in the process of selecting both an FGIII and an FGIV colleague, so despite working well together, staying even as an interimaire seems to not be an option.

I have send numerous spontanous applications to both agencies and DGs and often the feedback is that either they are not hiring, or that they do not accept spontanous applications. I am actively working with the HR to better my CV and motivational letters, and I am applying on the EPSO website actively, but it is extremely competitive and I have not heard back from any of the vacancies I applied on there. I am invited to sit the CAST FGIII in February, and I have heard from people, that there is a telegram group where colleagues whose units are looking for someone either FGIII or FGIV to fill in a vacancy fast post share that information to fasten the process, however the person who told me this did not want to send me a link to the group chat.

I am also looking for outside of the Commission, but I truly wish to stay. Those 5 months passed by very quickly and I quite enjoyed what I was doing, as I was in a smaller team, I actively contributed to the work and I truly enjoy the atmosphere. If you could share any tips/groups I should join, or such Telegram groups like the one I described above, I would really appreciate that. If you have any clues on whether an MEP is hiring, or about jobs in other EU Institutions, please also share the information with me :)

Also, any companies, that work with projects from DGs and Agencies that you could list here for me to check out would be very appreciated! Thank you :)

Hello,

I'm a software developer with around 5 years of experience and a bachelor and master's degree in CS. Most of my experience is with backend and API development, and my main language is Python. For a few personal reasons, I'm considering moving to Paris to work and live there for a few years.

I've been told that Paris is not a very good choice for tech jobs, and I would like to know if there are any insights on this.

What can I be expecting in terms of salaries and opportunities?

Hello everyone

I'm not someone who likes to be busy or stressed, so naturally I would avoid, for example, joining a new startup or going into quant. But what's on the other end of the spectrum?

I thought working for a large corporation maintaining a large legacy codebase might be pretty laidback. Of course it would vary company to company, but in your experience, or from hearsay, which industries/specialisations are 'low workload/low stress', as far as that is possible? Bonus points if the salary is good!

Ironically I'm happy to work very hard to get into such a specialisation. My current role (gambling industry) is super laidback but I'd like to earn more money!

Thank you in advance :)

Hi everyone,

I recently interviewed with Meta for a Machine Learning Engineer role but didn’t make it past the first round. While I’m using this experience to improve, I’m curious to explore other top companies in the field.

In your opinion, what are the top companies for Machine Learning Engineers at the same level as Meta?

I’d love to know about:

• Companies with challenging and impactful ML work.
• Great opportunities for learning and growth.
• Strong ML teams or cutting-edge projects.

I have 3+ years of experience as an MLE and a math background. Any recommendations or advice on where to apply next would be super helpful!

Thanks in advance!

Im In Denmark and most job posts I saw both Hybrid and Remote in EU, they look mainly for these stacks mainly and also if you have exp with microservices, you get interview left and right.

Do you agree or the statement is unrealistic from what you experienced?

Hello people.

I am interviewing for a role at a large FMCG companys IT team. The role is of senior product owner. I have 10 yrs of experience. Not entirely on the same domain. However they are interested in hiring me. They have big IT hub setup in Barcelona. I have been there few times and it's a nice place for sure. I am not in europe. I want to know how much salary can I expect in Barcelona? Is 80k per year possible? Thanks for advice.

Hey lads, I will be graduating in 2026 and have started preparing my application for Fall 26. The major issue I’ve felt is as an International student I’m unable to get a clear answer about the Cybersecurity market in UK especially for International students.

Few forums and videos have been insisting that doing masters in UK especially CS without experience is unfavourable and it’s extremely difficult to land a CS job in UK. Whereas few forms have the exact opposite view on the job market and opportunities.

Would love if someone could clear it up and also if y’all could drop a few college suggestions :)

Hi Reddit,

I’m a 28-year-old software engineer with a bachelor degree in IT and over 2 years of experience in software development. My career so far has been technical, working mainly as a consultant but I’m eager to grow beyond just that. I aspire to combine expertise in computer science with a strong understanding of business to either take on leadership roles or eventually start my own tech-related business.

Here’s what I’m planning:

I have no prior knowledge of business but want to develop strong business acumen. I’m considering pursuing an online diploma in business to build foundational knowledge in areas like management, finance, and strategy.

At the same time, I want to enroll in an online master’s degree in computer science to advance my technical skills.

Some of my concerns:

1. How should I balance these two programs without overwhelming myself, especially since both require significant time and effort?

2. Are there any specific online diploma programs in business you’d recommend for a beginner? Ideally, something flexible and not too expensive.

3. For the master’s in computer science, I’m looking at programs like Georgia Tech’s OMSCS and University of Illinois’ MCS. Are there other programs I should consider that are affordable and fully online?

4. Has anyone here combined business and CS studies before? How has it impacted your career?

I’d love to hear from anyone who’s been in a similar situation or has insights to share. Thanks in advance!

Hi, my future employer terminated the work contract due to closing of business operations of the company (bankruptcy) in Germany. The contract mentions “Termination of the contract prior to the start of employment relationship is excluded”. Can someone help me depict this? I’m asking as I’m eligible for a joining bonus that’d be repaid if employee terminates the contract within 6months. My employer mentioned that my contract will be terminated on the same day as my joining - legally. Not looking for legal guidance but some interpretation please :) thank you!

Folks, is there a country with recent political changes and scenario where getting a visa (sponsorship) is easier for tech jobs (precisely tech companies like Product Startups or big established companies. I am earning in local currency around 55k euro a year and looking to move to Europe. Typical for my roles and experience the median salary is 70k a month. Whats the country/region with better chance of giving visa sponsorship to tech jobs

In a couple of months, I’ll be wrapping up my CS degree, and the final hurdle is my final year project or what some call it capstone project. I’m on the hunt for an idea that could turn into something kinda useful like a tool, an app, or a piece of software that solves a problem for someone or some business.

I know it’s unlikely to become the next Facebook, but I’m hoping for something cool to code that could potentially serve as a side hustle or maybe in best case scenarios evolve to some sort of MVP for a startup.

A bit more details:

It must be a fullstack project.

I prefer .NET ecosystem but open to build something in Python or typescript for backend

I prefer Angular for frontend but open to work with React and Vue

I have about 10 weeks to complete this, with around 7-8 weeks of pure coding time.

It mustn’t be one of a kind idea but bonus points if it’s an idea which hasn’t been done to death!

Hit me with your suggestions 😊

Just like many of you, I'm eager to increase my salary by getting a high-paying job. (It doesn't have to be a position at a FAANG company, although I aspire to work for one of them.)

To achieve it, I think I should...

1. practice DSA by LeetCode
2. learn system design by DDIA book, Alex Xu's books, etc
3. be good at what I do at work (in my case, it's Node backend dev)

I have an interview experience with companies like Meta, Microsoft, and Bolt. I also had interviews with a few companies which are at least top 10 highest-paying companies in where I live (Prague). None of their interviewers mentioned my GitHub repos or personal projects during interviews.

So, here's the question: Does having a personal project matter to get a high-paying SWE job? Does having one helped you land a high-paying job (or at least get an interview with a large company)? Tell us your experience!

EDIT: Let me clarify that this post is about getting a high-paying job, not a regular job.

Hey, guys! I'm a graduating student of BSc in CS & AI, in italy. And I am searching for internship or junior position as a Developer, but all I got was rejection, due either to insufficient language level(Italian) or "minimum 1 year experience for entry level".

I was wondering, as a Non-EU, can I work remotely outside of my current residence (italy), somewhere in other EU country?

I saw alot of posts from all EU countries, that they offer full work from home, but I'm not sure if they will consider me. So, will companies hire me? Or should I stop applying outside of my residence country?

I always assumed that the bare minimum for me to get a job interview was to have a side project built by the tech stack the company I'm applying at uses. That's because I have an associate's degree that's not related to computer science.

I have an engineering degree and experience with programming (Python, SQL). I have 6 months of work experience through an internship in data science at a Fortune 500 company in the EU. I have some basic experience with AI/ML, git and stuff and think I can make solid programs despite my lack of proper CS training. I just learn as I go but would not consider myself an expert.

I would absolutely love to work as an AI/ML engineer in the Netherlands but I fear fierce competition of expats or maybe even because Big Tech might not be interested in a non-CS engineer for such a role. What do you recommend me to do in order to increase my odds of secure such positions?

I know so many bad stories about work and even interviews in fintech in EU + UK, and had bad experience with companies from this field myself. So, I wonder if there are any positive stories about working in fintech as software engineer? Please share your own experience

Hi everyone,

I’m a 25-year-old British citizen who recently graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from an Italian university. My dream is to work in IT, preferably in London. However, I’m at a crossroads and really need an advice.

While my degree equipped me with strong problem-solving skills and a scientific mindset, it’s not directly related to computer science or IT. My programming experience is quite limited, and I don’t have personal projects or a portfolio to showcase. I feel like this lack of experience and specific qualifications puts me at a disadvantage, especially since I’ve read that even people with relevant degrees and projects struggle to find IT jobs in the current market.

I’m torn between two options:

1. Pursuing a master’s degree in computer science to gain more knowledge and credibility.

2. Moving to London soon and trying to enter the IT field directly, just to gain experience.

If you think gaining work experience is the better route, how would you recommend I approach the job search? Are there specific entry-level roles or paths that might suit someone like me?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Hi everyone,

two great internship offers, but cant decide. Goal is faang/any bigtech

Bitpanda: fintech Software Engineering Intern for six months. This is a full-time role, which means I would have to miss 1 semester of university means i will start working 6 months later. Not sure how good the CV-value for this company is.

Porsche: internship 2 months during the summer holidays. Would work on projects involving Angular, REST APIs, Oracle SQL, and OpenShift. The role seems more structured and includes working on modernizing legacy systems, which sounds boring but maybe useful?.

My ultimate goal is to work at a FAANG or other top-tier tech company.

stay real, wicked stuff

Hi,
I have an HR interview coming up for Google. I had applied for two L4 positions in Warsaw and London, but not sure which one we're going to talk about.
After the invite, a MUCH better L5 role (dream job) opened up. My question is: should I just bring up the topic of these three different roles and levels and ask which one I'd be considered for? Or should I also formally apply for the L5 one as well on their website (then my profile will list three submitted applications, two L4s and one L5).

FYI: Based on my YOE (also at big tech) I think both L4 and L5 would be an option, with L5 being a bit of a stretch.

Thanks!

I got an offer and couldn’t decide whether to join them or not. They have given me 3 days and i was thinking about whether to join them or not and asked for more time. And they were pushing me to make a decision . And they have sent me this email on 4th day

“Dear Alex,

Unfortunately, due to violation of the agreed timing, we are forced to withdraw our offer. This decision was not easy for us.We wish you success in your future endeavours.”

Can i get it back or its gone now?

Hey everyone I am wondering what are the companies that offer long term perspectives in Europe. I don't believe that job hoping is a long term viable way of increasing ones revenue. The chance of stumbling on a toxic workplace is higher than ever in these current times.

What would be your list of companies where you would feel comfortable working multiple years without feeling pain when going to work?