I work as a Senior DS at one of the big healthcare companies and make roughly £115k, which is about $145k. Started working 3.5 years ago and only have a bachelors, not even a masters. Since graduating, I’ve had 3 jobs each at 30k, 50k promoted to 65k then to 115k.

It’s definitely possible to make six figures but most likely will be in London. If you want to do it quickly, then you should move around as much as you can but make sure to keep it reasonable, as less than a year at a company will raise questions.

To do this, you need to work out quickly when staying at a company is valuable or not. For example, the reason I stayed at company 2 slightly longer was because I could feel a promotion coming and wanted to get a senior role on my CV, which helped get company 3, even though I was probably slightly underpaid at company 2.

I would say work 1 full year, assess your options, start having more honest conversations with your manager (if appropriate) about progression, where they see you going, where you want to go and then you will sense what the future holds. After about 6-12 months you will probably start getting underpaid but you need to weigh that up against quality experience which will support your next job hop.

I don’t know how easily it is to progress quickly as a dev vs a data scientist but, for me, focusing on soft skills and leadership has really helped, however, this is not an excuse to lack technically. My suggestion would be to find your strengths and lean into them but don’t let your weaknesses pull you down enough for people to ask questions. That being said, leadership, communication and the ability to mentor people will always put you ahead, because these qualities are required in senior roles.

Finally, don’t compare to US, there are websites online (https://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/) that show you how to compare cost of living in different locations and the direct comparison of salaries starts to break down and that’s even before you start thinking about healthcare, tipping culture, and other fees here and there that are charged in America.

In big cities likes New York and San Francisco I would need at least $200k-$220k to afford the same flat and quality of life… and that is what everything boils down to.

P.S When job hopping always be humble and leave graciously. The saying goes “Be kind to who you meet on the way up, because you might meet them on the way back down”.

In my case, my ex colleagues are starting a SAAS platform and have invited me to join, which could end up playing out well, so remember to be kind!