Fresher CS grad looking for advice from experienced folks in the current market
I'm a recent computer science graduate from TMU trying to figure out the best route forward. The junior software engineering market feels saturated right now due to AI and offshoring, so I'm not sure whether grinding LeetCode and posting projects on LinkedIn alongside mass applying is still worth it. I have a solid foundation in Java and Spring Boot, backend fundamentals, and system design, but I've intentionally avoided going deep into frontend development given reports of a ~25% decline in frontend hiring and increasing AI automation in that space. A few alternative paths have been suggested to me: cloud engineering and data engineering (though I'm unsure whether they hire at the entry level), QA automation engineering (pitched to me as a more beginner-friendly entry point into the industry), and pivoting to Python and AI/ML as a more hirable skillset right now.
I just want some wisdom from experienced folks in the industry and what they would advise, obviously no one can predict the future but I have some time on my hands to sharpen a skillset, I'm just unsure about what route to take and what skillset to target. I will say out of everything I listed I enjoy backend development the most.