"Can't Make a Mistake": 18-Year-Old Seeks Career Advice, Asks if IT Is Still a Safe Choice
- An 18-year-old South African woman heading to university asked Reddit for honest career advice about studying IT and computer science
- She explained that as the child of a single mother, she could not afford to choose the wrong path and had noticed a rise in unemployed CS graduates online
- South Africans on Reddit weighed in with a range of perspectives, from cyber security and cloud computing to project management and trades
PAY ATTENTION: Mark Briefly News as a preferred source, and our content will appear higher in your Google feed!
Source: Getty Images
An 18-year-old South African woman preparing to start a higher certificate in IT next year turned to Reddit to ask a question that many young people quietly carry: is a career in computer science still worth it?
The post, shared on r/southafrica by user Relevant-Clothes3787, quickly drew dozens of responses. She explained that she had been interested in the field since Grade 9 and had pushed through setbacks to get to where she is. But with her mother raising her alone, the pressure to make the right call felt enormous. Check out the Reddit post here
"I really just need to push myself to excel in my course and get a well-paying job. I cannot afford, literally, to make a mistake."
Her concern was not unfounded. She had been reading about the growing number of CS graduates struggling to find work and worried about following the same path.
PAY ATTENTION: You can now search for all your favourite news and topics on Briefly News.
What South Africans on Reddit said about IT careers
The responses were varied but mostly encouraging. Several users pushed back on the idea that CS is a dying field, with one pointing out that those who land jobs rarely post about it online, which creates a skewed picture of the real job market.
Others pointed to specialisations that are seeing strong demand, including cyber security, cloud computing, data science, and machine learning. One commenter noted that South Africa's English proficiency makes its tech talent attractive to international companies, both for remote work and relocation.
Source: Getty Images
One user who works for a UK company doing server architecture said there is 'lots of opportunity globally' for those willing to look beyond traditional developer roles. A commenter shared that the City of Cape Town offers bursaries for scarce skills, with IT on the list, which drew a relieved response from the original poster.
Not all the feedback was straightforward. One user who graduated 12 months ago with a CS degree said they had sent out hundreds of applications and remained unemployed, adding that they were not sharing this to discourage her but to be honest about the difficulty.
One commenter suggested she consider pivoting into project management after her IT qualification, citing salaries ranging from R20,000 a month for juniors to over R165,000 for remote roles with overseas companies. Another suggested trade skills such as electrical work or green energy installation as underrated alternatives.
A second-year networking student encouraged her to stay the course, build experience at an entry-level role, and grow from there, describing the IT world as one that ‘will gladly welcome you.’
3 Other Briefly News stories about unemployment
- A Wits University LLB graduate shared a raw and emotional appeal about his two-year struggle to find articles after graduating.
- CAF president Patrice Motsepe addressed questions on illegal immigration and job creation at a press briefing in Johannesburg on 22 July 2026.
- A TikTok video of a South African man, Siyamthanda, publicly thanking the March and March movement for his new job.
PAY ATTENTION: Stay informed and follow us on Google News!
Source: Briefly News
