8 Pros and Cons of Being a Data Engineer

If you’re looking for database jobs, you might have an interest in data engineering. It is one of the current hot jobs with high salaries.

To find out if you’re right about it, read our article! We will deeply analyze the advantages and disadvantages of being a data engineer. Then you can decide whether you should pursue this career or not. Let’s read on to discover right now.

Who is a Data Engineer?

Data engineers design, develop, and maintain data tools and structures. They can help companies solve many problems related to large amounts of data.

Data engineers often work alongside different departments, including data scientists. Their goal is to ensure that the data is always available. From there, analysts and businesses can rest assured of using it.

Data engineers also contribute to improving business results. They provide data to executives and business analysts. From there, business owners will have appropriate policies to handle.

Working as a data engineer

Here are the pros and cons of being a data engineer that we have compiled. These notes may vary from person to person, so they are for reference only.

Let’s find out the reasons that you should become a data engineer in the section below:

1. High Demand and Competitive Salary

Data engineering is the potential for an attractive salary. They have a role in managing and maintaining a company’s database.

Besides, the popularity of AI technology contributes to the growth of this industry. Some companies are recruiting for this position to process AI-generated data. This case leads to many industry opportunities.

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that employment in this industry will grow by 11% (2019 to 2029). The growing reliance on technology is the driver of this strong job growth.

The result of this high demand is an attractive salary. According to Glassdoor, the median annual earnings of data engineers in the US is over $90,000.

2. Opportunity to Work with Cutting-Edge Technology

You will have access to the most advanced technologies to get the job done well.

Understanding these technologies can help you build and manage secure databases. This benefit gives you more knowledge and skills to work more.

You can choose your work environment when you keep abreast of technological developments. With high qualifications, you can apply to any big corporation.

3. Variety of Work

Data engineers are responsible for many data-related matters in a company. They have many tasks to complete. Thus, they will not feel bored while working.

They always work with colleagues to produce products to design and construct databases. As a result, data engineers can improve their skills to become professionals. From there, they have more professional experience for a better working environment.

4. Impactful Work

We already mentioned that data engineers are important. Indeed, without them, the business cannot run. They build a database network in the most scientific way to access it. Thus, managers often favor and give them many benefits that other positions do not have.

Besides these benefits, you will encounter some difficulties working as follows:

5. Required Technical Skills

Of course, data engineering requires many skills. Typical among them are skills in using programming languages. They need to know the basics and how to apply them in data construction and management.

They also need to know how to work with ETL tools and REST-driven APIs. These tools will help them create and manage data integration jobs. By mastering this skill, engineers can help managers access their data warehouse.

Also, there is a lot of other knowledge that a data engineer needs to complete the task. Thus, doing well as a data engineer is a difficult job.

6. Challenging and Complex Work

Although data engineering is an attractive job, it is challenging. That is because there are many complex requirements from customers.

Customers and business owners are not experts in the field of information technology. So they often give difficult tasks to technology engineers.

Also, having many departments working on the database leads to many problems. Data engineers often have to deal with them.

7. Long Hours and Tight Deadlines

Since there are so many tasks, data engineers always work under pressure. They often stay at work overtime to ensure the smooth operation of the database system. As long as any errors appear, they must immediately solve them.

Besides, high working pressure may cause health to go down. So you must know how to organize your tasks and find a work-life balance.

8. Isolation from End-Users

People who use data usually don’t know who built it. When you go to a website, you are interested in the data, not the person who manages it.

Thus, it is difficult for technology engineers to catch the end users’ tastes. Instead, they have to clear the business to survey customer satisfaction.

Is Becoming a Data Engineer Worth It?

Female data engineer

As you know, the demand and salary in this industry are very high. Many young people are starting to pursue this industry.

But you need to determine your needs to know if this industry is worth it. Even if the salary is high, it is pointless if you don’t have passion.

When you don’t have enough love and the spirit of asking for money, you won’t overcome the pressures of this job.

So you must consider the pros and cons of this profession. As a result, you can decide whether to pursue it. If yes, start learning database design and construction skills today!

Conclusion

Now that you know the pros and cons of being a data engineer. If you enjoy working with databases, start learning today.

The career paths in the data industry are diverse and wide open. Thus, consider pursuing this career. To read more articles about other jobs, visit our website!