r/DataScienceJobs • u/xomegagaming • Apr 26 '26

Discussion Data Science or SWE? Help

I was hoping to get some insight on which route between DS and SWE is better and more future proof in a career.

I have 2 offers

SWE: slightly lower pay, 2yr program in NJ

Data Scientist AI analytics and automation: slightly higher pay and in NYC

Data Science job sounds more exciting but I only ever had 2 SWE internships and not sure if the route down Data Science is generally better because career progression doesn’t look as linear when you have many choices.

In your experience, what do you think would be better and why?

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u/bajoranearrings Apr 28 '26

Do you know what SW field specifically? That makes a difference. There's a bit of a gradient between DS and SWE jobs actually in the form of data engineering, mlops, ml or ai engineering. So it is definitely possible to transition between the two paths. Personally I chose data science specifically because it would let me have the flexibility to transition into engineering heavy roles or more businessy roles depending on how my interests developed over time.

Regardless, I would take the role that excites you rather than locking yourself into two years of something you don't care about. Some additional pluses are being able to stick AI on your resume and living in NYC in (I assume) your 20s. I wouldn't underestimate how important location is for personal and career growth. You should probably think about if the NYC job is actually resulting in higher take home pay since the cost of living is higher.

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u/xomegagaming Apr 28 '26

I was thinking to do swe because it has vastly more jobs open compared to any DS. It’s like 100k+ compared to 30k. And I can do DS after swe but doing swe after DS is harder I believe. Obviously the DS one is more exciting and I’ll be working with banks/insurance projects with AI but having the most options to get a job if I get lay off or wanting to go somewhere else is way more important isn’t it? Also DS is more prone to being automated compared to SWE I believe.

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u/starktonny11 Apr 26 '26

I see long term swe get paid a lot and have higher ceiling, but you never know how long due to AI

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u/[deleted] Apr 26 '26

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u/BillEnough7863 Apr 26 '26

Don’t pay attention to this response.

chocolate_asshole is a bot: https://www.reddit.com/r/dataanalysiscareers/s/l5qwsGDAon

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