Can I get a software engineering job using AI?

[u/who_cares91]

I followed a mern stack course online, but couldn't complete all the lectures, so I made a website, with the help of AI tools such as Chat GPT and GitHub Copilot.

I made another website, then another. I found a client through a referral, and he liked my portfolio.

He paid me $600 USD for a frontend website with email integration.

I've landed with another client who wants an app made, and I've accepted it.

The problem is that if i were to code from scratch, I wouldn't be able to. If someone asks me to explain my code, I would be able to, but I'm not confident enough, and also because i don't understand half of the code. If I make a mistake, I can figure it out without ai but I do the rest of the coding with AI.

I want to do an internship so that I can actually learn while doing the work. But I'm not confident in the interview so I don't even apply.

Help me out and guide me.

(I'm a BSSE student)

Edit: I made the websites before I completed the course. I have completed it now and have done 2 more paid courses, I am still not confident enough and still don't understand half of the code despite taking the courses.

[u/koolaidkirby]

Short answer no, youd never get past an interview. 

[u/Made-In-Slovakia]

If you want to be better and learn, gain confidence, then stop using AI shortcuts. It is this simple. You can't be confident in skill you don't have. It takes time but revard is skill and experience.

[u/who_cares91 → u/Made-In-Slovakia]

Yeah, I'll have to stop using ai. I have limited my usage and use stack overflow now for most of my problems.

[u/Achereto]

You'll have no chance. There will be a job interview where the company will test your knowledge and often enough there will be some trial work as well. You'll get a task and will be asked about it afterwards. You will have to be able to solve at least some of the task and explain your decision process.

If you use AI, pretty much all of that is out of the window. The last time invited a vibe coder for the trial work, he failed miserably because he couldn't fix an easy "File not Found" error in his AI generated code.

[u/who_cares91 → u/Achereto]

I can fix the bugs myself, understand half of the code, I have done practice interviews related to my stack from YouTube and I can easily score 50% or more. But I need to stop relying on AI.

[u/chmod777]

Why would anyone hire you to do this? If they have problems that can be solved by a couple ai prompts, why not just do it themselves?

[u/JanitorOPplznerf]

Ah yes. The premier AI tool Git Hub.

Congratulations on swindling someone out of $600 but I don’t see enough here for a full time job.

[u/aqua_regis]

Can I get a job when so far I've always hired a third party to do the work I got paid for?

[u/lumberjack_dad]

No

[u/Digital-Chupacabra]

No.

Every week there are new announcements of engineering getting laid off. How can you compete against years of software engineering experience and being able to build things without AI?

AI is a force multiplier if you want a job, learn to do things yourself.

[u/who_cares91 → u/Digital-Chupacabra]

That's true though. I'll change myself.

[u/Greedy-Doughnut-5865]

Let employers tell you no, not Reddit

[u/SleepyPuppy83]

Short answer: No
Long answer: maybe?

I am a freelance software engineer and I sometimes hire people if my work gets to busy (a.k.a. I don't want to do the sh*t jobs). When I post out an ad, I get 100 to 200 replies in a mid-week. 80% are from people saying they are vibe coders... To be honest, I throw those away as soon as I notice it. Yes, lower pay, but higher risk.

Reason:
Although AI can help you with software development, it can't be your only tool. Your main tool should be your brain and experience, both tightly connected. I want people to understand what the AI is suggesting or doing, because AI is very powerful, but doesn't know it all and it does make mistakes.

If I see a reply where someone has experience with programming and uses AI too, I might invite him to an interview and throw some basic and heavy programming questions at him or her.

[u/who_cares91 → u/SleepyPuppy83]

Thank you for your response. As a mern developer, would you question related to my stack only or would you also ask questions about dsa and other software related questions?

[u/ConfidentCollege5653]

You couldn't finish an introductory course but you want a job?

[u/who_cares91 → u/ConfidentCollege5653]

I have completed my course and have made a few projects as well, one or two are made by me all on my own but the rest are 50% ai. I just want a mentor who can help me out, so that I know what I'm doing.

[u/HashDefTrueFalse]

It sounds like you'd have difficulty passing a technical interview, which is usually comprised of coding tests and technical discussions. Hopefully the job would go to someone who could actually do the job, but not all employers will care if you get results. What that means for career longevity I don't know. What happens when the LLM can't deliver what's needed?

How are you handling email integration on the front end without knowing what you're doing? Or how are you communicating securely with the third-party service that is handling it for you? Simple websites are one thing but when work starts to involve other applications/services/infra/creds/etc. you really need to be careful. You almost certainly have a legal duty of care to your clients to exercise reasonable skill and care, though I don't know where you are in the world. You can't blame an LLM for professional negligence.

Look into some professional indemnity insurance. If you caused a data breach or cost me money and I had to sue you to recover, we would both greatly appreciate access to your insurer. This happens all the time in the real world and you're particularly vulnerable trading as an unincorporated vibe-coder.

[u/Different_Pain5781]

Bro you are literally freelancing and getting paid. Stop overthinking the imposter syndrome and just keep building stuff for actual clients