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Issue 498 mid senior engineer blog (#532)
* feat:add blog post * fix : revert change * fix: update blurb image and improve content structure in mid-senior engineer blog post * Update _posts/2025-06-10-mid-senior-engineer.html Co-authored-by: Eleonora Belova <[email protected]> * Update _posts/2025-06-10-mid-senior-engineer.html Co-authored-by: Eleonora Belova <[email protected]> * Apply suggestions from code review Co-authored-by: Eleonora Belova <[email protected]> --------- Co-authored-by: Airah✨ <[email protected]> Co-authored-by: Eleonora Belova <[email protected]>
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‎_posts/2025-06-10-mid-senior-engineer.html

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---
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layout: post
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title: Mid-Senior Engineer: A Journey of Self-Discovery
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date: 2025-06-10
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author_name: Irina Kamalova
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author_role: VP Lead Software Engineer @ JPMorgan Chase
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blurb_img: /assets/images/blog/2025-06-10-mid-to-senior-engineer-banner.png
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blurb_img_source:
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description: |
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So, you've mastered the fundamentals, you're a reliable contributor, and the "Mid-Level
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Engineer" title feels comfortable. But the ambition to grow, to take on more responsibility,
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and to reach that coveted "Senior Engineer" status is bubbling beneath the surface. You're
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not alone! The journey from Mid to Senior is a significant step in any tech professional's
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career, and understanding the available pathways is crucial for strategic advancement.
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category: Career-progression
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---
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<div class="text-justify">
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<p>
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<i>So, you've mastered the fundamentals, you're a reliable contributor, and the "Mid-Level
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Engineer" title feels comfortable. But the ambition to grow, to take on more responsibility,
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and to reach that coveted "Senior Engineer" status is bubbling beneath the surface. You're
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not alone! The journey from Mid to Senior is a significant step in any tech professional's
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career, and understanding the available pathways is crucial for strategic advancement.</i>
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</p>
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<p>
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I suggest to look at two strategies following the chart:
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</p>
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<div class="article-media">
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<img class="img-fluid" src="/assets/images/blog/2025-06-10-mid-to-senior-engineer.png"
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alt="mid-to-senior engineer chart">
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</div>
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<p>
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<b>Path 1: Get a promotion within your company </b>
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<ul>
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<b>Goal: </b>Get a promotion within your company.
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</ul>
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<p><b>Plan:</b></p>
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<ol>
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<b>
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<li> Align your goal with your manager.</li>
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</b>
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<p>
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This is the first and the most crucial step. Unless you come to the person who is responsible for your promotion
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and ask for it there's no sense in preparing a plan with steps, enrolling in certifications for promotions, and
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getting more projects on the plate without any advice.
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</p>
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<b>
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<li> Set up exact steps with your manager.</li>
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</b>
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<p>
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From the first step, you should learn what you need to do: where your gaps are, where your strengths are, where
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your weaknesses are.
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</p>
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<b>
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<li>Execute those steps</li>
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</b>
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<p>User SMART technique for each step. </p>
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<b>
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<li>Ensure recognition across teams.</li>
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</b>
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<p>It's crucial for promotion to be visible inside your company. The more you help others, the more scope you touch
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and your knowledge increases. </p>
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<b>
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<li>Work for the review & feedback. </li>
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</b>
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<p>The important point is to know exact dates where reviews and promotion windows inside your company are happening.
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Your review date is your hard deadline.
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</p>
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</ol>
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<b> Outcome (if your goal is not yet achieved): </b>
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<br>
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<ol>
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<div>
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<b>
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<li>Gather the feedback and create an actionable plan from it to close gaps.</li>
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</b>
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All those steps gave you an amazing experience. How could you do better? What is left for the next time? Through
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several iterations you're guaranteed to get the promotion. However, it could be from 2 to 5 iterations with a
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feedback loop.
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</div>
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<b>
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<li>Go from 1 to 5 from the previous block again.</li>
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</b>
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</ol>
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<p> <b>Outcome (if your goal is achieved):</b> Promotion to Senior Engineer. </p>
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<b>Pass the Interview to obtain the Senior position </b>
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<ul>
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<b>Goal:</b>Pass the Interview to obtain the Senior position.
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<li><b>Plan:</b>
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<ul>
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<li>
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Apply for the interview.
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</li>
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<li>
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Ask HR what stages and how to prepare; ask for feedback in advance.
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</li>
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<li>
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Prepare for the interview.
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</li>
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</ul>
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</li>
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<li><b>Possible Outcomes:</b>
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<ul>
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<li>
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Obtain the role in a company with a quicker feedback loop and get the promotion there.
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</li>
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<li>
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Analyse the feedback and apply for the next interview. (This outcome loops back to the "Plan" stage for
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passing the interview).
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</li>
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<li>
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…and, of course, obtain the role of Senior Engineer!
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</li>
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</ul>
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</li>
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</ul>
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<p>
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Now, the great question: should you follow both paths simultaneously? It's up to you, however, the balanced model
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will be to go through Path 1 for a year and if you've not succeeded go through Path 2 for the next year. The
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iterative approach will lead you to the goal. However, the common trap for engineers is to try to do both paths at
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the same time and it leads to burnout. One path can be the background while the other is the focus. Regular
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interviews wouldn't hurt but be mindful of your time and remember that they were in the background path when you've
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got a rejection.
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I wish you the best of luck on your way!
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</p>
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</div>

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