imposter syndrome as a new grad in your first tech job: how do…

imposter syndrome as a new grad in your first tech job: how do you actually get past it

newgrad_neil · 4 replies

six weeks into my first job as a junior SWE and i am not okay. not like "struggling" not okay. like "i got this offer by accident and they're going to figure it out" not okay.

my first PR review came back with 14 comments. some of them were style things, some were actual logic errors i should have caught. my tech lead was patient about it but i went home and honestly wondered if i should quit before they fired me.

the rational part of me knows: i'm 6 weeks in. everyone gets PR comments. 14 comments on a junior's first big PR is completely normal. but the irrational part of me has a louder voice at 11pm.

a few things that have helped a tiny bit:

documenting what i learn. every day i write down one thing i didn't know that morning that i know now. sounds corny. actually helps. after 6 weeks i have a list of maybe 40 things. that's real.

asking questions out loud. my first instinct is to spend 3 hours googling before asking anyone. i'm trying to cap that at 30 minutes now. asking questions makes you look curious, not dumb. i keep having to remind myself of this.

not comparing myself to my senior teammates. they have 5-10 years on me. comparing my week 6 to their year 6 is insane. but i do it anyway.

the part that gets me is: i can't tell if what i'm feeling is normal new-grad imposter syndrome that fades, or if it's a real signal that i'm underprepared. how do you tell the difference? has anyone been through this and come out the other side feeling like they actually belonged?

specifically curious if people's first 6 months felt like this and then things shifted, or if it stayed bad. trying to figure out if i should be worried or just patient.

4 replies

careerveteran

i've hired probably 60-70 junior engineers over the years. the ones who ask me about their PR comments and want to understand WHY are never the ones i worry about. the ones i worry about are the ones who go quiet and just "fix" things without learning.

you're 6 weeks in. you're supposed to be confused. the 14 comments tell me your tech lead is engaged and teaching you, which is genuinely a good sign about your team. first 3 months is almost all just pattern-matching: what does good code look like HERE, how does this team communicate, what are the unwritten rules. you're in that phase. it's uncomfortable and normal.

hardware_hugo

this actually really helps. the "going quiet and just fixing things" point especially. i've been trying to push myself to add a comment to each PR response explaining what i changed and why, even for small things. maybe that's the right instinct.

bootcamp_bri

first tech job here too, just a bit earlier than you. i can tell you it does shift. for me the turning point was around month 4, when i started having opinions about our codebase. like actual opinions, not just "i don't know what's best here." suddenly i had preferences. that felt like something.

the 30-minute googling cap is smart. i use the same rule.

staff_steph

the way to tell normal vs. real signal: are you learning? if yes, it's normal. if you've been there 18 months and have the same knowledge you had at month 1, that's a different conversation. 6 weeks is nowhere near enough data.