External signal·IEEE Spectrum·Dec 25, 2025·Gwendolyn Rak·5 min read
How to Stay Ahead of AI as an Early-Career Engineer
“But if all of those are going to get taken over, you need to slot in at a higher level almost from day one.”
Summary
This IEEE Spectrum feature examines how generative AI is reshaping entry-level engineering roles rather than simply eliminating them. Entry-level hiring at the 15 biggest tech firms fell 25% from 2023 to 2024 (SignalFire), and US computer-programmer employment dropped 27.5% between 2023 and 2025, while the more design-oriented 'software developer' category fell only 0.3% and roles like information-security and AI engineer grew double digits. Kelly Services' Hugo Malan calls it a 'tectonic shift,' noting programmers were hit hardest because the work is solitary and highly structured. Stanford Digital Economy Lab research finds jobs whose tasks AI automates show bigger early-career dips than those where AI augments workers; NACE data show 61% of employers are not replacing entry-level jobs with AI and 41% plan to augment them within five years.
Predictions for the future of work
The piece predicts a realignment rather than wholesale destruction of early-career tech jobs: routine coding gets automated while roles demanding higher-order thinking, security and client work grow, and new graduates must 'slot in at a higher level almost from day one.' Experts expect generative AI to eventually touch all intellectual work, and warn that short-sighted hiring will starve the mid-level pipeline. They prescribe AI fluency, demonstrated skills and apprenticeship models to close the experience gap.
Originally published by IEEE Spectrum · Dec 25, 2025
Read the original at IEEE Spectrum