Day in the life of a Software Engineer (Unfiltered Version)
Ever wondered what exactly the life of a professional working 5 days a week, behind those ‘Day in the life’ vlogs on YouTube and TikTok?
We all love scrolling social media and checking out what the other person is up to.
And then mid-way through those mindless scrolls, we often get enticed by the idea of knowing how a normal day looks for our favorite influencer, YouTuber, or any other online personality we’re fond of.
But what they mostly show is a very filtered, refined version of what their workday looks like.
My friend, reality is always a bit different from the sorted, shiny videos you see on your mobile screen.
In this blog post, we’re going to cover the very realistic and absolutely unfiltered version of how exactly a day in the life of a software engineer looks like.
All that glamour is not always the reality
Needless to say, we’ve all once come across a fancy video with a very general title on a social media platform, titled ‘Day in the life of a software engineer’.
If you haven’t, then welcome to Reality 101!
A software engineer’s normal day isn’t always about what Big Tech companies, such as Google, Meta, and others, employee vlogs show.
Such vlogs often start with showing beautiful scenery while commuting to the office and then having delicious-looking breakfasts while scanning through your mail inbox to reply to some ‘super’ important emails.
Then you get to see an employee sitting in a very aesthetic workspace and tapping their fingers on the keyboard, giving you some keypad ASMR.
After that come the free lunch breaks, coffee breaks, and snack breaks with clips of the employee sitting with their laptop in between as work transitions.
And then comes a clip where they shut down their laptops, and it’s time to go home.
However, life as a software engineer isn’t about the time lapse of perfect camera moments you get through the day.
It’s way messier than you think!
What happens behind the scenes?
Let’s discover the messier parts of being a software engineer, and before we start, we want you to know that not every content creator out there gatekeeps the reality; most of them do show bits and pieces of it.
Compared to other professions, software engineering is a slightly more demanding field, and it’s not always fun while working in it.
Even though the work-from-home culture has impacted the IT industry with more organizations adopting remote work options, not all organizations offer a smooth work-life balance.
Most of the engineers have to stay on call, work on weekends, and conduct meetings according to different stakeholders and their time zones.
Working remotely also means that it’s not always a 9-5 job, and employees do have to work in shifts.
Not every day looks the same
Do software engineers just code all day?
People are often curious about what software engineers exactly do, and most of them think it’s all about coding and sitting in front of a screen the whole day, while having some caffeine breaks in between.
Well, that’s not true; a software engineer’s day isn’t always about code; rather, they perform several tasks required for a Software development cycle, such as designing, developing, testing, and maintaining it.
Different types of engineers have different roles to play
What a day in the life of a software engineer realistically looks like depends on their role and the duties they are required to perform:
- Front-end Engineer: These engineers take care of the part of the software that is presented to the end-users. Their common tasks consist of some coding, along with meetings and collaboration with designers to enhance the user interface of the product, eventually improving user experience.
- Back-end Engineer: While front-end engineers make sure that users love the product, the back-end engineers work behind the scenes and make sure that the product functions smoothly. They are always busy managing databases and API frameworks and optimizing different processes.
- Quality Assurance Engineer: A QA engineer’s day consists of collaboration with developers to fix bugs and test the code several times to make sure the product works smoothly. They also write automated tests and perform manual checks to identify any bugs or errors.
- Security Engineer: Their main task is to protect the product from any cyberattack or data breach. Their day mostly consists of securing the software with cybersecurity protocols, being proactive and monitoring any potential threats, and working on risk management.
What does an actual day of a software engineer look like?
This is what a technical aspect of a software engineer’s job looks like:
Coding: This requires them to stay updated and skilled with several programming languages such as JavaScript, Python, Ruby, and more.
Testing & Debugging: They test the product and debug it by identifying errors and running several tests. They also make sure that the code is optimized.
Reviewing: Senior software engineers also review code written by other employees working under them and help them fix potential issues.
Upgrading & Updating: Their duty includes keeping an eye on outdated software and licenses that are integrated in the systems and can hinder the organization’s workflows.
Staying current: Since this is a technology-related field, software engineers often take courses and certifications to stay in the process of continuous learning and work on their professional development.
What do software engineers do besides coding?
How the non-technical side looks:
Attending Standups: They attend daily standups and regular monthly or bi-weekly meetings to ensure agile software development.
Working with Writers: Software engineers also work closely with technical writers to explain how the product works, the features it has, and the value it gives. These meetings help writers with creating product user guides and answering FAQS.
Meetings with Clients/teams: Stakeholder communication is another crucial part of a software engineer’s job, according to their role. They need to attend regular meetings with clients, other engineers, and developers to stay on the same page.
Mentoring: Engineers with management-level roles also mentor interns and entry-level engineers in their teams to get maximum creative output.
Gaining experience and landing more strategic roles
Once a software engineer has a solid experience of all the technical and non-technical aspects of their field, they move up the career ladder and are offered roles that demand their coordination with other team members and software engineers to build strategies.
Interested in becoming a software engineer?
If you read the entire article and believe that you’re capable of handling the not-so-glamorous side of software engineering as well, then do check out these IT education programs as a stepping stone for becoming one.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. What is a typical day like for a software engineer?
A typical day in the life of a software engineer consists of different tasks and responsibilities according to their role. Generally, a day as a software engineer is filled with routine emails, standup meetings, coding, debugging, testing, upgrading, and much more.
Q. Is being a software engineer a stressful job?
Yes, it can sometimes depend on the role of the engineer. Certain roles of software engineers, such as management, mentorship, and others, often lead to stress. Moreover, long working hours and too much screen time a day, with a lack of enough sleep, can be considered as major stress factors as well.
Q. Do software engineers work all day?
Just like every beneficial thing comes along with some drawbacks, working as a software engineer has some cons as well. Mostly, software engineering companies offer high-paying roles to engineers with an 8-hour shift, generally for five days a week. However, after the COVID-19 pandemic, most of the companies switched to the remote model, offering software engineers much more work-schedule flexibility than ever.
Q. Do software engineers have a good life?
Software engineering jobs are considered to expand since the expected CAGR of the software engineering market is expected to grow over 6.5 % between 2024 to 2032.
While having certain drawbacks like long working schedules, software engineering is a good profession to enhance your lifestyle if you know how to create a work-life balance and set clear boundaries.
Q. How many hours do software engineers work at Google?
According to the internet and Google employees, they are expected to work 8 hours or less, depending on the nature of the tasks they perform. Google offers a flexible schedule between and after working hours so that employees can rest well and have time for their life besides work. Moreover, it also offers vacations to help employees unwind and be more productive while working.