r/cscareerquestionsPAK

Can someone guide me how CY is in Fast Islamabad? And overall is it a good field to go into?

Curriculum for both still teaches dead tech (Adobe Flex at UET, Java Servlets at PUCIT 💀). So I already know the degree won't make me industry-ready, I'm self-teaching regardless. Two real questions for this sub:

1. PUCIT or UET KSK? Not asking about the syllabus. Asking about faculty, peer network, and which one actually pushes students toward internships/jobs.

2. What should I self-teach for freelancing?

No taste for frontend, so MERN is off the table for me personally

Pure Node.js backend: most gigs on Upwork/Fiverr bundle it with full-stack, hard to sell standalone

MERN/WordPress in general looks oversaturated to me. Millions of devs, race to the bottom pricing

If I'm wrong about any of this, correct me now, not in month 8. Willing to grind a full year, just want to grind on the right thing. What's actually landing people paid freelance work in 2026?

would love to hear your thoughts on what I should do?

Hey guys i’ve applied for air in AI CS AND CYBERSECURITY AND MECHANICAL ENGINEERING cus i’ve done pre eng but i think i wont be able to like get admission in ai cs and cyber as you all know the cbt is a bit tough although my preparation is really good but let’s see i am hoping for the best but to be on the safer side i think i should change my fourth mechanical engineering with some program related to computing cus i think mechanical is not good as i will always have to do the field work I can’t work from a home and office
So i need your suggestions which computing program would be really helpful for me in the long run?

Hii guys! I just finished my engineering in BEI probably pass bhainxa hola. Bachelors bhari ramailo garera matra sakyo aila market ma apply garda internship job paunai garo raixa. Tyo bhnda ni major question dimag ma what to do sabai ma ali ali interest bhako jasto but too much planning yo to tara k garne nai thacaina jasto. Cybersecurity, data science, software engineering, ai/ml jati ni field chha kunai explore garyaxiana ramro snaga aila tanab matra . If any seniors had been through this any suggestions or advice would really help.

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> Because today was my first day with no job, and I literally don’t know what to do with my time.

> It’s quiet. It’s uncomfortable. And I’m scared of this phase, not gonna lie.

> But I’m reminding myself: this is a season, not a life sentence.

> So today I’ll rest. Tomorrow I’ll plan. And I’ll keep going.

My life has turned into hell ever since I realized I might be stuck here in a hub job in Canada forever if I don’t live right now but my skills have deteriorated , my soft dev job is barely a tech job (it’s pays avg) it’s mostly architecture documentation hell and I am sick of it. I feel so irrelevant .

I’m 25m have student debt, and family financial commitment . Single and don’t plan on marrying as I’m in full depression and can’t sleep and obsessing over future .

Should I do master in finance or MBA and try to pivot my career altogether I would be willing to start at bottom . There is no growth where I currently am and I also don’t think there is growth in software industry as whole unless it’s big tech . Basically I now understand that tech is a Kia white collar labour job.
Please give me advice

Hi everyone. I was laid off on May 15th due to organizational restructuring, and it's been a rough month and a half since. I've been upskilling and applying nonstop, but barely hearing back from anyone.

The few responses I have gotten have mostly been from companies abroad, mainly the Middle East. I'm a software developer (Angular/Next.js/Nest), and I'd really appreciate it if someone could take a look at my CV and tell me if something's off.

Separately, I've also been doing cold outreach on LinkedIn trying to land freelance projects, but no luck there either.

Any feedback or pointers would help a lot. Thanks in advance.

Hello all.

I just gave my 2 year examinations and am applying to universities.

I have applied to

UET

PU

GCU

UMT

ITU

My marks in matric were 1020/1200, or 85% and my 1 year marks were 449/560 or 80.17%

The merit is very high and the fees are insane. Minimum of 150k per semester.

I am a Hafiz. I spent quite a few years doing hifz and then an extra year for my hifz degree. So I am older than my friends.

None of them have any idea of what they're gonna do. These are all smart students btw. I do not have the luxury.

I am 22 this year and my father's only son. As we know the economy is been down but we can pray that business picks up with petrol going down.

I unfortunately don't really know anything as well. I picked the computer route because well, my only goal for a job is a job where I can make halal money and I can make a fuckton of money.

Recently as I was applying for admissions, I was suggested to try for BBA or to pick banking as a field to go into.

Banking did seem appealing but after two with my dad, he did give some valid points that I didn't think of. So I do think that computer is the best thing I can do right know.

Unfortunately, CS is highly unlikely cuz of the high merit. PU is also impossible.

I need some guidance on wtf I'm doing. What are the latest trends going around in the computer science world?

I know nothing but I want to and need to learn. I want to learn as much as I can. How can I keep up with the tech world?

What is the scope of computer science in Pakistan?

I'm thinking of going into cyber security, ai or app/game development. But I know nothing. I know it's quite hopeless right now, but I want to learn. I want to change. I want to develop skills.

I just don't know what to do. I don't have anyone who I can talk to for advice or help. They have no answer. I know nothing of ai or cyber security or app development.

What should I do to get info and knowledge on them? What do I need to do? I need to get back I to practicing writing programs as well. What are the best ways to practice for that?

I know that skills matter and you need to develop them. You need to start doing things within your 4 year degree because waiting until the degree is over is a death sentence.

What can I do? What courses can I do? What are some reliable sources of information to stay up to date? What are some other subs I should be a part of?

Thank you for any help.

I'm a software engineer from Pakistan with around 2 years of experience, and I'm looking for advice from people familiar with the local hiring market.

My timeline looks like this:

• Worked at Company A for about 1.5 years.
• Left and joined Company B (a large corporation), but I was let go during my probation after a few months.
• About 2 months ago, I joined an early-stage startup where I'm building their MVP. I've been handling almost everything: backend, web app, mobile app, Azure deployment, authentication, APIs, and more.

Recently, a recruiter from a well-funded startup reached out to me for a Full Stack Software Engineer role.

Here's my dilemma.

I don't really want to mention Company B because I'm worried that being let go during probation could hurt my chances. The founders of my current startup trust me and have even offered to issue an experience letter showing I joined 3–4 months ago instead of 2 months ago. That would make it appear that I left Company A, joined the startup directly, and was later laid off because the startup couldn't secure funding.

I'm conflicted because it would make my resume look much cleaner, but I'm also concerned about background checks, future verification, and the ethical implications if this comes up later.

If you were in my position, what would you do?

• Leave Company B off my resume and explain the gap honestly?
• Include Company B and explain that it simply wasn't the right fit?
• Use the revised experience letter from the startup?
• Take a different approach altogether?

I'd especially appreciate advice from Pakistani hiring managers, recruiters, or software engineers who've dealt with similar situations or know how background checks typically work in Pakistan.

I'm 24 and graduated with a BS in Cyber Security from FAST. I've spent the last two years working as an AI/Software Engineer, building LLM and AI products.

Lately, I've been questioning whether I want to stay in software engineering long term. It's not that I dislike technology, but I no longer find day-to-day coding as fulfilling as I once did. With AI rapidly automating parts of software development, I'm also uncertain about where the industry is heading over the next 10–15 years.

I'm considering pursuing an MBA at a well-regarded business school and eventually moving into product management, technology consulting, or another business-focused role. However, I'm worried about giving up a strong technical career too early.

For those who've faced a similar decision:

• Did you stay in engineering or transition into business?
• If you pursued an MBA after a technical degree, was it worth it?
• Looking ahead 10–20 years, which path do you think offers better opportunities and career satisfaction?

I'd really appreciate practical advice and experiences rather than general opinions. Thanks!

I have a BSc and MSc in Computer Science and I work as a backend engineer at a FinTech company.

Initially I was sceptical of AI but it is getting hard to ignore that it changing software engineering as we speak. I do not anticipate that it will be able to automate entire software engineering process but it gives a lot of power to the companies. Teams will shrink, less people will be needed, more stress and pressure, lower salaries. I think that this will be the effects of AI on the industry in the near future. I trust that being tech savy gives me some advantage but it is still pretty scary.

I am pretty deep into CS without many alternatives and it got me thinking. If I am next on the chopping block, I won't have any other valuable skills. Here is my question. Are there any fields that complement CS? Maybe there are some underrated ways I can combine CS with med? Anything really. I need some alternatives so I can stop stressing out and sleep well at night.

Big data specialists are gonna be the most highest growing job until 2030 according to world economic forum. But half of its work is already ai automated also its a new degree. DS is harder to transition and has a lot of maths. i might wanna change or transition into other fields, but it wouldn't be as easy as with SE.The other option is software engineering. It is general, so obviously, more job options are available to be better based on concepts. But apps r made by AI asw. So i am not sure after 4 years will it be in demand. Software not only includes apps and websites, so maybe it'll js change or evolve. Idc about it being tough. I js want a good job without much torture and bothersome.

Assalam-o-Alaikum everyone!

I have just completed my 2nd year of BSCS and my long-term goal is to pursue an MS/PhD in CS/AI/ML abroad (USA, Canada, Europe, or Australia).

To strengthen my profile, I want to get involved in AI/ML research and hopefully publish a research paper during my undergraduate studies. I recently started learning Machine Learning through CampusX and plan to build a strong foundation first.

The challenge is that I'm from a Tier-3 university and unfortunately we don't have any research labs, active research groups, or professors working in AI/ML research. Because of this, I'm not sure how to take my first steps into research.

I would appreciate advice from students, researchers, or professionals who have been in a similar situation:

• How did you get started in AI/ML research?
• How can an undergraduate student find research opportunities without a research lab at their university?
• Is it realistic to publish a paper independently or through remote collaboration?
• What skills should I focus on first (math, ML, programming, reading papers, etc.)?
• Are there any communities, programs, or platforms where students can connect with researchers?

Any guidance, personal experiences, or roadmaps would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!

I have been meaning to complete an internship as a part of my university requirement, which one is better
Askari Bank or HBL

Assalamualaikum,

I’m a 7 semester CS student from Multan Looking for some honest career guidance and a bit of a reality check.

This is how it happened Eight months ago, I was one of the first devs to join a new tech startup with an American CEO. I accepted 30k PKR/month initially because I wanted the experience. Honestly, the team has been incredibly kind to me. They once invited me out to a trip, they send Eid bonus as wel, and the overall environment is very positive.

Because of the fast pace, I worked long hours (8-12hr) sometimes even during my university exams and helped build their core backend foundation, database architecture, and project structure from scratch.

About six months ago, my friend and I asked for an increment from the CEO directly He said that they were managing expenses carefully out of pocket and that we are all building this together as a family, and he bumped us up by 7k (making it 37k PKR).

However, we recently learned that the main team based in a major city is being paid around 150k to 300k+ PKR/month, then spending even more on expenses and some newer hires are making even more. While I like the company culture and the kindness they've shown me, the reality of this salary gap has made me realize I need to think about my long-term future. I don't want to be in this exact same financial position 8 months from now.

I want to start looking for new opportunities, but I have a major block I’ve become very reliant on AI tools to push out fast startup features, and my manual coding confidence has tanked. I’m terrified I’ll fail a live technical interview. (For context: I used to do a lot of DSA and solved around 400 LeetCode problems, built a lot of Fullstack projects,made a project used currently by more than 15+ government department before this job, but I feel incredibly rusty now).

I’d appreciate your advice on how can I renegotiate my current salary or if I have to switch how should I start preparing for interviews?

AoA!!! Im currently working in a shop in a local market in Gujrat and coming to the market i really come to know about how a lot of things work in real world. I started working after 12th because my parents couldn't afford my studies so i ahve to work (pretty normal) one of my friend had already started working in the market after 8th standard. But i cannot work there anymore because not a single shop owner is good to their employees no matter how good you deal with customers how good you do they will abuse you for no reasons they will disrespect for no reason (no matter if the customers are there or not) before that i couldn't afford a laptop that's why i couldn't learn any skill bit somehow i have bought my laptop now and i want to learn skills like data Analytics, supply chain analyst or any other data field because from school and college i always love doing maths and i love numbers but when i started digging about those roles they mentioned that the person should have a degree certs alone won't be working to be eligible. Recently i saw about project management role for remote job they were saying that there are no degree requirements. Just because of these things i dont have any skill. Can anyone tell me for which role should I start preparing like project management, E-commerce management or bookkeeping because i just want to step into a decent and respectful job ao that later i can do my degree from VU and pursue my dream job. Im really exhausted right now....

Assalam o Alaikum everyone

I'm a CS student from Pakistan and I really need help finding a paid job in pentesting or cybersecurity.

Here's a bit about me:

• I won 1st place in a national bug bounty (NADRA) this year , found a critical vulnerability in government infrastructure
• Been playing ctfs regularly and ranked Top 7% in SecLeaf CTF and Top 42% in HackTheBox University CTF globally
• Done 1 offensive security internship and the 2nd is about to start at ITSolera
• Built my own security tools in Python
• Been posting on LinkedIn too about the stuff and achievements etc

I've been trying hard but I'm struggling to get interviews. If you have any advice, know someone hiring, or can point me in the right direction it would mean a lot. Happy to share my resume.