Should programmers retire at 35?

Perhaps in the eyes of most people, a programmer is a glamorous job with high income, no wind, no rain, air conditioning in the office building 24 hours a day, and various treatments. I really envy many people. Moreover, many people also think that programmers are very young. They may lose their jobs after the age of 35 and have to leave the programmer industry. Most companies limit the age of 35 when recruiting programmers. When many internet companies implement layoffs, people over the age of 35 are the hardest hit. Once they lose their jobs, re-employment will become a problem. Is it true that programmers retire at 35?

The following is the translation:

Why can't the software development industry see white-haired programmers? Where are all the old programmers? Will the company fire older programmers?

If a programmer in his fifties applies for a position in his twenties or thirties, how many companies will hire them? There are many rumors and legends about this issue, and there are also some cruel realities.

Of course, being regarded as an "old man" at the age of 40 or even 35 is really shocking. The word "old man" here means that programmers can plan to retire or jump ship.

First, let's look at a set of statistics.

Statistics: Should programmers retire at the age of 40?

I found some contradictions in the statistics of some surveys. Stack Overflow surveyed 66,329 professional developers around the world in 20 19. The results are as follows:

Among professional developers, programmers under 35 account for 7 1.7%, and programmers under 40 account for 85%. Compared with any other industry, this set of figures is very unusual.

Through 50705 survey results, we found that the average age of developers in Australia and the United States is the highest, which is 32.8 years old; The lowest in India is 25.9 years old.

According to this research report, the number of software developers aged between 55 and 64 increased from 87,000 (8.3%) in 2065,438+065,438+00 to 2065,438+095,000 (65,438+00.7%). The number of senior developers in the United States is higher than that in most countries.

However, the situation changes every day.

According to Evans' statistics, there are about 24 million developers in the world, and by 2024, this number will increase by 20% to nearly 30 million. The United States currently has about 4.4 million software developers, the largest number, but India is expected to surpass the United States in 2024.

In addition, the number of software developers in Asia is increasing, but the average age of software developers is decreasing.

Why are old software developers so scarce?

high salary

Obviously, experienced and older software developers should get higher salaries (though sometimes not necessarily) than young people, and their expectations will be high.

The problem is demand. Do software companies need these experienced developers? Are they worth hiring? Basically, the answer is no. Companies usually don't need a large number of experienced senior developers.

Every company needs to face practical problems, and the pressure of shouldering a large number of high-paid senior developers is not small.

Change job

Most developers will find a way to make more money without writing code. Therefore, changing jobs is another reason.

Endless learning

With the rapid development of technology, programming languages and frameworks, many older (or even younger) developers can't keep up with the times.

As people get older, they have to take on many other responsibilities. They usually don't have enough time to learn new technologies. This is another reason why there are not many senior developers in this industry.

Professionals in other industries don't have to face such great learning pressure. Programmers need to learn new technologies endlessly.

environment

As time goes by, people will gradually notice that they have become the older generation of the team/company, surrounded by a group of young programmers.

Due to the generation gap and other factors, many people can't communicate well with young programmers. They feel lonely at work. This is another reason.

A relatively new industry

Compared with other industries, the software industry is relatively new. This is one of the biggest reasons. With the development and maturity of the industry, I hope we will have the opportunity to see more old developers.

Promote entrepreneurial culture

Entrepreneurs hope to build software products quickly and break the old world. Every entrepreneur's dream is to change the world in some positive way. As an entrepreneur, I can understand this psychology.

It is not enough to have ideas, we need to implement them in a down-to-earth manner. But before implementation, entrepreneurs need some high-tech products (if they are technology startups). They can't afford products that take a long time to make.

Because if an idea fails, they must learn from their mistakes and then develop in another direction according to the experimental results. All these experiments need the rapid development of high-tech products.

In addition, because the funds for developing software are obtained through financing, they usually have no other disposable funds.

Therefore, in order to develop technical products quickly at low cost, entrepreneurs have to look for young developers. However, after the startup companies enter the mature development stage, they will need experienced senior developers, because these senior developers can build a strong foundation and solid architecture for the products.

Dan Lyons, the former screenwriter of HBO TV series Silicon Valley, once said in an interview: "I think they all think that young people can bring the greatest return: squeeze young people hard, and then change a group of people when they die."

This age discrimination in science and technology industry has caused many problems and brought mental pressure to young and old developers.

How do programmers survive in this industry?

For many people, programming is more than just a profession. Recently, I read some related articles and found that many developers over 50 or even over 60 are still engaged in programming.

Some of them have other job opportunities, but they all turned them down because they like programming. In fact, being able to do what you like is a great blessing in life!

However, whether you like it or not, if you want to engage in this profession for a long time, you need to keep some suggestions in mind. Whether you are young or old, all programmers need to remember:

Always try to learn new technologies, or you will be abandoned by the times.

Keep up with young people's thoughts

Besides the low price, companies like to recruit young developers for two reasons:

They are eager to learn. They are curious and like to learn new things. They all learn advanced knowledge.

They can inspire many new ideas and share them.

Therefore, please keep up with young people's thoughts. As long as you have a young mind, age is not important.

Let go of the "technical burden"

Many programmers have technical burdens. Please put down your baggage and keep an open mind to new technologies.

If a programmer has been engaged in a specific programming language for a long time without any other work experience, some recruiters will regard it as a red flag.

Programmers' way out

After reading these, you may think: "After working for a period of time, do old programmers have to find another way out?" The answer is that most people don't.

Next, let's look at the way out for most programmers.

operate

Because companies can hire young and energetic developers with less money, experienced developers need to take on some important roles, such as first-line or second-line managers.

consultant

Although young people have many advantages, they can't take on the role of consultants. Experienced developers can consider the position of consultant. And consultants can also make a lot of money.

freelance journalist

Others become freelancers and work according to their own ideas.

An expert in a professional field

Many old developers have become experts in their fields. I have met many experts in specific fields, such as big data experts in healthcare or experts in Azure cloud architecture.

In some fields, the requirement for experience has always been high.

early retirement

There are also some developers who choose to retire early and become trainers for young developers.

start a business

Many experienced developers will use their interpersonal relationships and skills, and then take out some funds to start new technology companies or startups.

Continue to be a programmer

Yes, this is also an option. Many developers are still engaged in software development at the age of 50 and 60. Technology allows them to survive in this industry.

abstract

Older developers are worried about job stability. They often bear a lot of psychological pressure. I think this situation can be avoided if we make preparations in advance.

New programming languages, frameworks and libraries emerge one after another, so we should keep learning. Sometimes technicians often ignore this point. But the reality is that these technologies will soon become obsolete.

Sridhar Wembu, CEO of Zoho, conducted an experiment in which they directly hired a group of high school students aged 65,438+07. However, he found that after two years, the performance of these new employees at work was almost the same as that of their peers with college education.

When it is difficult to keep teenagers, there are always teenagers coming.

Will software development really become a game for young people? Although I personally think that age is just a number, the premise is that programmers will not get into trouble because of age and keep a positive learning attitude. what do you think?

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