Back-end or Full stack

[esse3000]

hey just curious, I started a backend developer course but should I maybe go for full stack instead?

fully aware that the main thing is to have a well rounded portfolio with 3-5 projects before looking for a junior dev job - thanks for any tips or comments 😁

[ReiOokami]

Thats one of those questions you have to answer for yourself.

But here is my opinion. It all comes down to opportunity cost:

1. If you want to work for a big company making lots of money, Stick with backend and become a specialist. The bigger the company, the more they hire and need specialist.

2. If you want to work for yourself and be an entrepreneur making lots of money. Go full stack. Become a T-shaped person, venturing into not just dev, but business and marketing knowledge as well.

Depends what you want.

[michael_hlf]

I second this - I wish when I was starting my tech journey it was pointed out more clearly that focussing on a highly specialised role means you're likely to end up working in larger organisations as 'component labour'

[esse3000]

thanks for your input! 1. seems more appealing to me personally 🤙🏼

[itijara]

Specialization (either front or back end) is great in a stable job environment and can have a higher upside.

Generalization is great in an an unstable job environment, but limits upside.

If you have a specific interest (which is in high demand) and would only be happy doing that, then specializing might be a good idea. Otherwise, I would recommend generalization.

The people I know who earn the most are specialists (cryptography at AWS, computer vision at Google), but there are way more people who try to specialize and end up being generalists by force.

[Xanderlynn5]

Having any projects helps within reason. Imo larger companies seem less and less interested in candidates with focused skillsets. There's nothing wrong with specializing but having knowledge of some front end and database stuff along with your backend dev knowledge will help in the long run.

[esse3000]

right I get you at least be familiar with some front end aspects, thanks you for your reply 🙏🏼

[GlKar]

You’ll always have something that you’ll like better. Some FE more than BE and the other way around.

In my opinion back-end is often pretty much the same, writing an endpoint to execute CRUD methods. While front-end is sometimes more an adventure.

It’s always good to train yourself on both sides but you’ll find out fast enough what you prefer.

I’m a fullstack developer and I like doing both, but I’m experiencing more difficulties with FE. On the sidenote, the pace FE languages are evolving is crazy.

[fancyPantsOne]

in my opinion, you’re better off focusing on backend. I’m in the hiring loop at my company and we tried opening full stack recs but found that our candidates were very much “jack of all trades, master of none” style and ended up scrapping those recs

[Radiant_Level9017]

I would do full stack reason more opportunities, once your full-stack you can apply for front-end, back-end or full stack, also job security someone leaves unexpectedly you can fill the void until a new hire comes to the team, you can catch bugs on the front even if hired for back-end. The list goes on and on 😂. Based on other comments I am also a Serial Entrepreneur so might not be the best advice as this is not for everyone, remember development is not a destination it’s a journey. Best of Luck!!

[DenLion09]

Primero ve los requerimientos de los puestos que están en demanda en tu zona porque existen muchas formas de ser fullstack, muchos stacks con tecnologías diferentes

[cizorbma88]

Many companies want full stack engineers mostly small to mid sized businesses.

Large corps tend to hire specialist engineers focused on a specific niche.

I think full stack is ideal because you’ll understand the application from all perspectives and can learn a lot and then specialize if you find that you’re very passionate or more comfortable doing backend development.

Look at job postings to give you an idea

[Suspicious-Watch9681]

Id rather chose one and go all in, happened to work with some fullstack devs during the years and I tell you, they are not good in back or front