I was in SRE for 3yrs. I want to switch to SWE role. Do I have to start from entry level?

Question

Background -

I have been devOps engineer for 1.6 years and SRE (SRE2) for another 1.6 years at different org. I was essentially put in PIP and had to resign. Reason stated for PIP was that I had spikes of performance at the level hired, but wasn't enough.

I was the best performer in my previous org, had to learn everything from scratch about devOps on the job. Got pretty good at it, earning multiple spot awards and mid year increments. I switched to new job with very huge hike (my pay was pretty low in prev org) and was excited to contribute. But, the behavior of my manager, the fact that I wasn't able to connect with my team on a level I wanted, not that interesting work under the hood and that there were no deadlines or push to do work, resulted in low performance. Within few days of joining, I lost all motivation to do anything for my team. My procrastination levels went on a peak.

I recently got diagnosed with moderate depression and anxiety and low sense of self worth. I knew this was always there, but it didn't come up much in my previous org, I could rely on my manager there, struggled hard to persist and make a mark and my procrastination was overridden by my quest to prove myself and the fact that everyday I used to think - I struggled the whole last week, if I leave, it would all be to waste! My back being against the wall, I came out swinging since there was no other way in my mind.

I want to change my field because I have been in this for more than 3 years and it isn't fun anymore, I don't learn or use my brain much and I find myself not so technically smart apart from knowing tooling!

With all this, I am seeking answers to the following -

I want to switch to SWE roles, but I have no Dev projects to show for (would be building something now). Can I apply for senior roles(SDE2s) or I have to start from beginning? What kind of projects should I focus on building to show hiring comittee?
Should I do an SDE internship instead?
With the problems I face on procrastination and other things, should I be upfront with the recruiters? How do I make sure that my performance isn't affected in the new place? I don't have much data points from past 2 experiences

PS - Already went through this answer, but in need of more clarity - https://link.jointaro.com/NLv7FAfWwxq4iGUm9

Sai Shreyas Bhavanasi · Accepted Answer

In my opinion it is pretty tough to switch roles and new jobs at the same time. It might be better to look for SRE roles and switch internally. This job market is tough for entry level. You'll be competing with other SWEs. Companies are already taking a risk hiring a new candidate. It doubles the risk to hire a new candidate with different skill sets. Also when considering switching roles and levels, the best thing to do is just apply! You'll find out whether or not your skills are enough. Use simplify extension and spend 3-5 hours next week sending out 150-200 apps and you'll be able to gauge. Yes I would focus on building projects. In my opinion I would focus on having 2 different projects -- build 1 project that's directly aimed at optimizing for users/impact. Another project that's aimed at showing you have relevant skills. The reality is that outside of big tech (which is not hiring jrs right now) F500s and startups want to see you have experience with the tools they use. So if you built a ton of projects with Python but they use springboot/go or something then they are less likely to hire you. Ideally you're able to do both with 1 project but sometimes that can be hard Internships are super rarely given if you're not a student so that might not work. There are some apprentice programs so you can try that but they are generally super competitive I don't think it's in your advantage to reveal a weakness like that especially with no real solution. Rahul often says you should be very strategic with what you reveal and don't reveal any information that can hurt you if you dont have to. Of course dont lie, but if it's not helping you then dont reveal it. I'm sorry to hear about the depression 😞. From what I'm hearing I would look into working with a therapist to address this and diagnose the underlying issue. If your mental health is affecting your life so much then to me it seems like something therapy would help a lot with

I was in SRE for 3yrs. I want to switch to SWE role. Do I have to start from entry level?

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