[PJUG Javamail] Is software engineering in the US dead?

[steve.j.hall at tektronix.com]

Is software engineering in the United States dead?

I am currently working in Java and Java EE creating and maintaining applications that support global manufacturing and service.  I have been with this company approaching 4 years.  I have recently been notified that the manufacturing facility in which I work is being moved to China.  Accordingly, my current job will end sometime in 2010.  This is the second company in a row that has notified me that my services will no longer be necessary as they are moving this job function to over seas providers.

I have contributed significantly to some great projects during my career.  However, looking back over the 11 years I have been involved in software it seems to me my career has been anything but upwardly mobile.  In fact, looking back it is evident that four organizations in the past ten years have been filling a role, while planning on consolidating to another region either within or outside the United States.  Naturally career growth and upward mobility in such an organization is non existent.

To provide a more complete picture, below is a summary of my background:
B.S. in Computer Science
Sun Certified Java Programmer
11 years in software development, 8 years focused on Java and Java EE.  I work in all layers from the database to the user interface, full SDLC
Lots of other skills: team lead, team building, interviewing, management, project management, and the like.

I have seen the resumes of the candidates we are hiring in China; the resumes are generally peppered with the names of American corporations going back at least 5 or 6 years.  I have had discussions with former colleagues who have shared their experience when their employer has outsourced to India.  In short, there is strong evidence of a shrinking industry here in the United States.  None of this makes me mad, as I don't believe that I am somehow more entitled to a job than someone in India or China is.  However, it sure would be a lot easier to navigate the global economy if there was some type of road map.

I am interested in PJUG member's opinions on whether software engineering as a career direction in the US is still viable, or whether this is a dying industry as software engineers cannot compete in a global economy?

I am also interested in opinions of where I should focus my efforts if I do stay in software engineering: Additional certifications in the Java EE platform; learn Spring and Hibernate, EJB3, something else?

Will a Masters Degree in software engineering be necessary to be viably employed in this industry in the United States?  Would an MBA be a better idea?  Should I give up and become a homeless bag man?

Please be candid, you will not hurt my feelings.

As a service to PJUG members, I will consolidate responses and post back to the group unless the response specifically requests that I not do so.

Thanks in advance,
Steve Hall
stevejhall at verizon.net<mailto:stevejhall at verizon.net>
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