graduated in May, CS undergrad, 3.6 GPA, two internships (one at a startup, one at a mid-size SaaS). been applying for about 4 months now. 300+ apps, maybe 25 OAs, 8 first rounds, 2 onsites, 0 offers.
i have an MS admit from a decent state school (not top-5 but solid program, in-state so tuition is manageable). was originally planning to defer a year and try the market. the year is almost up and i need to decide.
not sure if going back is giving up, or if the market is just genuinely bad and two more years of credentials + projects is the right call. anyone have a clear head on this who isn't just trying to sell me on grad school?
5 replies
careerveteran
i'll try to be straight with you. the MS helps most in two specific cases: (1) you're trying to break into roles that screen for it (certain ML/AI research-adjacent positions, some quant shops) or (2) you're trying to refresh your GPA signal for a second shot at places that screened you out as an undergrad. if neither of those fit, the MS is buying time more than credentials.
newgrad_neil
i want backend SWE, honestly don't care about ML specifically. so maybe option (2) applies? like my undergrad GPA is fine but not FAANG-filter fine.
careerveteran
for standard backend SWE, GPA matters less than your LC percentile and your interview reps. two more years of grad school will help, but so will two more years of industry experience. depends which one you can actually get right now.
staff_steph
market IS genuinely bad. not an excuse, just context. your conversion ratios (25 OAs from 300 apps, 8 first rounds from 25 OAs) actually aren't terrible for this cycle. the problem is volume at the bottom, not necessarily your profile.
that said: if the in-state MS is affordable and you can get meaningful research or TA experience, it's not a bad use of two years. just go in knowing it's a structured gap, not a magic key.
bootcamp_bri
not the same situation but for what it's worth: i spent 9 months in the 'just keep applying' loop before my first dev job. at some point the market just wasn't going to care about another 3 months of apps. the MS sounds like you at least have a path that isn't fully open-ended. sometimes structure is worth something even if the ROI math is fuzzy.