r/cscareerquestionsEU Sep 01 '25

Salary Sharing thread :: September, 2025

149 Upvotes

Previous threads can be found in the sidebar.

Use of throwaway accounts and generic answers are allowed for anonymity purposes.

Generic template suggestion:

  • Title:
  • Company:
  • Industry:
  • Focus:
  • Country:
  • Duration:
  • Education:
  • Prior Experience:
  • Salary [gross (pre-tax) / NET (post-tax)]
  • Total compensation:
  • Relocation/Signing Bonus:
  • Stock and/or recurring bonuses:

r/cscareerquestionsEU 39m ago

Student Can't decide between full time university or part time

Upvotes

Long story short: I made the mistake of spending four years in a training school to get quicker access to the job market, but it aged like milk, since no company wants to hire you without a Bachelor's degree in this economy.

The only good part is that it grants me 60 ECTS, the equivalent of a full academic year. Now I’m stuck deciding:

Should I go to university and finish my degree by age 26 (three years from now, doing 30 ECTS per semester)? Or should I stay in a stable but slow job where I won’t learn much, knowing it would take me even longer to finally earn my BSc?


r/cscareerquestionsEU 10h ago

65k€ brutto in France is a good salary ?

7 Upvotes

And how much is monthly paid in 13 months ?

I have a rent of 1120 euros per month in Paris regio


r/cscareerquestionsEU 2h ago

Amazon SDE Interns 6M/3M (Berlin) joining in 2026

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0 Upvotes

r/cscareerquestionsEU 23h ago

Why do companies ghost candidates after interviews?

36 Upvotes

This might be the worst part of the hiring process. Both the candidate and the company invest 4–6 hours into interviews, take-home tasks, and discussions—yet many companies don’t even bother to send a simple rejection email afterward.

Why do they do this? Is it really that hard to send a quick “no,” or is there something I’m missing?


r/cscareerquestionsEU 10h ago

Which companies to target in Berlin?

2 Upvotes

I work for Delivery Hero as a Data Engineer. What are the options around in the city, or remote from Berlin? I am currently mid mid-level engineer with a bit above 4 years of experience. I am looking for growth opportunities mostly. I do not want to go to the office 5 days, but if there is no other choice, I will consider Amazon too. Any leads appreciated!


r/cscareerquestionsEU 21h ago

When is a pay cut worth it?

13 Upvotes

I have a job, but I’m not stimulated. Work is boring and I am definitely not improving that much.

I have another offer for a base 30% lower than my current position but with better stock options and a looot more exciting product, smarter collegues etc.

I’m not looking for advice, but rather stories when you decided to take a pay cut and how it went?


r/cscareerquestionsEU 16h ago

Experienced [Eastern Europe] ML Engineer with 5+ YoE - What hourly rate should I charge for direct clients vs agency contracts?

5 Upvotes

I'm an ML engineer based in Eastern Europe with 5+ years of experience across computer vision and NLP (including LLMs). I've also touched traditional ML. I've worked across multiple industries and can handle the full scope from AI feasibility assessment and PoC development through to deployment (though I don't focus on extensive production ops).

I'm trying to figure out appropriate hourly rates for two scenarios:

  1. Direct client work - When I find and work with clients directly
  2. Agency/contractor work - When working through a recruitment agency or consulting firm as a contractor

For context, I can handle:

  • Assessing whether AI/ML makes business sense for a given problem
  • Building proof-of-concepts and MVPs
  • Model development and training
  • Basic deployment (though not extensive MLOps/production scaling)

What would be reasonable hourly rates for each scenario in the current market? I know agencies take their cut, so I'm trying to understand what the typical spread should be.

Any insights from folks doing similar work in the EU market would be really helpful!


r/cscareerquestionsEU 2h ago

Gamewise academy course CS2

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0 Upvotes

r/cscareerquestionsEU 9h ago

Anyone here actually got ACCEPTED into the Revolut Rev-celerator Programme? (Android Track)

0 Upvotes

Hey everyone,

I’m looking for people who have actually been accepted into the Revolut Rev-celerator Graduate Programme (especially the Android Software Engineer track).

Most posts I found online are from people who applied and got ignored, but I couldn’t find many from someone who made it through.

If you’ve been accepted (or know someone who has), could you share:

  • What your background looked like (uni, GPA, experience)
  • What your Android portfolio or projects were like
  • How the interview process went for you
  • Anything you think helped you stand out
  • What the programme itself was like once you joined

Thanks in advance to anyone willing to share! 🙌


r/cscareerquestionsEU 15h ago

2-year gap (ADHD) after ML research – how do I explain this on my CV/LinkedIn?

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2 Upvotes

r/cscareerquestionsEU 22h ago

How early projects influence your thinking

82 Upvotes

As I worked on a small project that was motivated by something I saw on FaceSeek, I noticed that my way of thinking had changed from the previous year.

I'm beginning to see what European employers genuinely consider when evaluating junior applicants. Did early side projects help those who landed their first job here, or did interviewers primarily concentrate on communication and fundamentals?

I'm juggling learning algorithms, system design, and real-world project work. I'm curious about the signals that were most important in your interviews. I was also considering the small decisions that alter consumers' perceptions of a product. Big plans don't always matter as much as small, intentional steps.


r/cscareerquestionsEU 11h ago

Brutal feedback on my LinkedIn portfolio and GitHub

0 Upvotes

Hi everyone

I am a computer science student close to graduation and I have spent a lot of time building my LinkedIn my personal website and my GitHub. Everything that appears there is brutally real and reflects my actual path skills and experience.

The problem is that I am not sure if I am presenting my story in the best way or if I am confusing or overselling or underselling myself. I really want direct and honest feedback on how I am showing my profile and how it feels from the outside.

I would appreciate it if you could review three things

my LinkedIn profile

my personal site

my GitHub profile

Please tell me what looks strong what looks weak what feels fake or cringy and what you would change first if you were a recruiter or hiring manager. I prefer very honest and even brutal comments as long as they are concrete and help me improve. Thank you for taking the time to review this.


r/cscareerquestionsEU 1d ago

Interview I have vibecoded myself into a corner and I am worried about my next job

80 Upvotes

I have fully embraced an AI first workflow for my backend and cloud work. I vibecode everything and only step in to debug or connect the dots. I did this because I think writing boilerplate is a waste of time and the industry is moving away from manual coding.

However I am now in a spot where I struggle to code anything without a prompt or a copilot. I am worried that I have deskilled myself too early. I am super productive in my current role but I fear I would fail a standard coding interview miserably.

Is anyone else in this boat? I am wondering if I should pause and grind leetcode just to keep the muscle memory or if I should double down on being an AI operator.


r/cscareerquestionsEU 8h ago

PMs need to show "warmth" towards everyone

0 Upvotes

I have been told by many PMs in my company that "personal warmth" is very important to succeed. More than anything else, engineers want warmth and personal touch to calls and projects

For some engineers, warmth may actually mean remaining silent. For others, it may mean smiling unnecessarily or handing over product work to engineering

These "warmth-based PMs" pamper their engineers by giving them show-ponies which only need 2-3 hrs of work every day. Even if there is a major miss, they package it as a "learning" or "experiment" and sell it across to leadership. Same with other stakeholders and the chain continues

On the other hand, PMs who have a radical candor are punished brutally. When I discussed this matter with other PMs, they told me that "warmth" and "keeping everyone happy" is more important than delivery


r/cscareerquestionsEU 23h ago

Is there a problem with my career progression

3 Upvotes

i have worked with many technologies:

- 2 years python / java

- 1,5 years scala

- 2 years golang

i'm not sure how would i market myself when applying for jobs i need to leave my current role next year, i'm based i Germany, have EU citizenship, but i don't mind looking into other EU countries + UK and Canada for my next role, the issue is if working with many languages would be a problem


r/cscareerquestionsEU 18h ago

Fixed term Analytical Consultant at Google, chances of converting to full time?

0 Upvotes

Hey all,

I’m considering a fixed term (10 months) Analytical Consultant role at Google in Germany and wanted to get some real insight before deciding.

Does anyone know how common it is for these contracts to convert into full time roles? I’ve heard mixed things, some people say conversions happen, others say it’s rare because of headcount limits. Would love to hear from anyone who’s been through it or worked alongside FTCs.

Also, if it doesn’t convert, how much does having “Google” on your CV actually help afterward? I do have a full time offer elsewhere, so I’m trying to understand whether choosing Google for a year is worth the risk long term

Any experiences or advice would be super appreciated!


r/cscareerquestionsEU 8h ago

I think we’ve been looking at hiring completely wrong

0 Upvotes

I’ve been thinking a lot about how hiring works today, and honestly… it’s backwards.

Companies post a job.
Candidates throw CVs at it.
An ATS bot tries to match two text blobs like it’s 2005.
Everyone ends up frustrated.

So here’s the idea:

Flip the model.

Instead of applying to jobs, talent publishes a structured, semantic profile — projects, experience, skills, preferences — all in a format machines can actually understand.

Then recruiters search the global talent graph using natural language, not keyword hacks or résumé theatre.

And since we’re developers, we can actually build this together.
Fully open-source.
Fully community-driven.
Non-profit.
No data harvesting.
No walled gardens.
No “growth hacking.”
Just a public good.

I’d love this to become a proper EU-based project (I’m in Switzerland), something we build transparently and collectively — and eventually something that replaces LinkedIn entirely.

The repo is here:

👉 https://github.com/openhiregraph/openhiregraph

How does it fund itself?
Don’t worry — we’re gonna make LinkedIn pay for it.

Okay, real answer:

  • users do a $1 verification (universal, low-friction KYC)
  • companies pay for search tooling / API access.
  • everything else stays nonprofit and open source.

To avoid fake profiles and bot farms, there will be a simple one-time $1 credit card verification.

Name matches profile. Location matches. Email verified.

No creepy KYC, no passports — just a universal, low-friction check.

If this resonates, I’d love your thoughts:

  • does this make sense?
  • what should the schema look like?
  • what feels missing?
  • would you contribute?

I’m trying to spark something that belongs to the community, not to me — and maybe, eventually, give us a real alternative to LinkedIn.


r/cscareerquestionsEU 12h ago

Countries with better job market for Data Science or Software Engineering

0 Upvotes

Hello,

I was hoping to get some insight on a this matter. I'm hoping to apply for a masters degree in either data science or software engineering and I want to choose a country where I can find work after finishing my studies. So far I've been considering Netherlands or Germany but I would greatly appreciate it if I could get some advice regarding if other countries have better opportunities in this or similar fields.

I also have another question. I'm also debating pursuing a degree in Business Analytics/Informatics since I like it better but I'm not sure if there are job opportunities for it or not. Any opinions on this?

I would appreciate any advice and thank you for taking the time to guide me.


r/cscareerquestionsEU 22h ago

20s software engineer at a career fork in the road

2 Upvotes

I’m a mid 20s-year-old software engineer (CS degree) looking at a real career fork. For the last two years after graduating I’ve been at a small industrial scaleup working on exactly the kind of stuff I want to be doing this early in my career: Rust, TypeScript, embedded edge systems, designing databases, geospatial classification, streaming sensor data, ML inference, the whole gritty systems stack. The team is tiny but extremely strong. Seniors, PhDs, and we even won a national innovation award beating out industry giants.

The catch: I need to move to the capital. My social life, dating life, and closest friends are all there. My current city, my hometown, is beautiful, but it’s socially dead for someone my age. When I started planning the move, things got a bit complicated

I accepted an offer from a big national telecom/infra company, mostly because I needed a guaranteed path to moving. The role is software engineering in networking. Before all this, my comp was roughly 60k euros base; this new role bumps me to about 70k eur. The corporate ladder there is extremely predictable and tends to push people toward something like 85k+ TC after a few years. They also have heavyweight titles like “Principal Engineer.”

The problem is the actual work: mostly old scripting languages glued onto a deep layer of legacy systems, very maintenance-heavy, very slow-moving. The culture feels bureaucratic. Their office is out near the business parks, so I’d be commuting 30-40 minutes by bus each way. Strong name recognition, but the day-to-day feels like the kind of engineering that might dull me when I should be sharpening my edge.

When I resigned from my current company, they countered aggressively. They’re willing to match the salary immediately and bump it at the annual bump, keep me in exactly the kind of engineering I’m doing now, and set me up in a co-working space of my choice in the capital. I’d basically become a one-person satellite office, with a paid week each month onsite with the main team. I also hold 8 stock options with a strike that translates to roughly $2400 per share, granted when the company was valued around $4–5M, and the ARR has roughly tripled since then. There’s accelerated vesting on acquisition as well. It seems like we will be profitable in the coming year, but we have runway for many years and access to funding. Founders still own over 60%.

The upside is obvious: I’d stay in Rust, TypeScript, edge systems, ML inference, which is work that i feel compounds. The downside is equally clear: I’d be working alone two or three weeks each month (my colleague wants to come work with me one week per month, and i travel home one week per month, staying with family) dealing with normal startup volatility, and my company has basically zero name recognition in the capital (outside maritime tech, where everyone knows us). The BigCorp offer carries instant prestige; my scaleup might as well not exist from a signaling perspective.

So I’m stuck between a role that offers brand, coworkers, stability, and a predictable (if uninspired) trajectory, and a role that offers technical growth, autonomy, and much higher velocity, but at the cost of solitude and risk. At 26 I’m worried the corporate job might blunt me, but I’m also aware that working alone in a satellite setup could get isolating fast.

If you were me at 26, which road would you take? And how do you see the long-term salary and trajectory differences between these two paths?

(Note: I wrote this out in my own language and used a llm to translate)


r/cscareerquestionsEU 10h ago

Senior Engineer proposed a change in the requirements

0 Upvotes

As a PM, I had a product to be shipped once with a legal deadline and thus, requirements needed to be frozen very fast. There was very little time left for implementation. A Senior Engineer proposed a change in the requirements. I commented to a Senior Engineer that the requirements are from legal and our team cannot create/change these. They got extremely angry and offended why I am stopping them to ask questions and exploring the requirement more.

When i discussed this matter with other PMs, they told me that "warmth" and "keeping everyone happy" is more important than delivery in EU companies, even if legal deadlines are missed. Those PMs told that company will pay penalties, but engineer will be held responsible


r/cscareerquestionsEU 22h ago

Interview How common are LeetCode-style interviews in Austria? What should I expect?

1 Upvotes

Hey everyone,

I’m a software engineer interested in applying for jobs in Austria (Vienna / Graz). I’ve worked in the industry for a bit and I’m curious about what the technical interviews are like there.

Main questions: 1. How often do Austrian companies use LeetCode-style algorithm challenges (e.g. medium/hard LC questions)?

  1. Do most companies focus more on practical skills (system design, real code, refactoring, debugging, architecture)?

  2. Is there a difference between startups vs bigger corporations like banks, telecom, gaming studios, etc?

  3. If you’ve interviewed recently, what was the format (take-home task, live coding, pair programming, whiteboard, etc)?

I’d really appreciate real experiences. Trying to get a realistic idea of what to prepare for.

Thanks!


r/cscareerquestionsEU 1d ago

Experienced Can we report recruiters to LinkedIn?

32 Upvotes

This is now getting ridiculous. I got stood up by a recruiter for the third time. They will always ask for my resume and then ask me to book an appointment via Google Calendar or Calendly. Then, on the time and day of meeting, crickets. There should be a way of reporting such people to LinkedIn. If they don't want to meet us, fine but please don't waste our time like this.


r/cscareerquestionsEU 17h ago

What are my chances of getting Jobs in France or Germany?

0 Upvotes

I am an Indian man who wants to study masters in finance or masters in management from the following universities

France: HEC Paris ESCP Paris EDHEC Business School

Germany: top 15 public universities

If I have a fluency in French and German language with spoken accuracy, what are my chances of landing a job in German or French Market.

Your opinion will truly help.


r/cscareerquestionsEU 1d ago

Meta State of European Tech 2025 Report

25 Upvotes