[throwaway713]

Besides your level of interest in each field, it’s important to note that at the top tech companies, software engineers typically receive 2x the RSUs as data scientists / data engineers for a given level. This is non-negligible and can range from an extra $30k to $100k per year depending on your level (base and bonus are typically the same though). Add in the time opportunity cost of getting a PhD, and a top software engineer can save up considerably more money by age 30 than a data scientist.

Money certainly isn’t everything, but I’m considering switching to software engineering (from data science) because I would like to reach financial independence more quickly than my current trajectory allows.

[estilos]

maybe it's dependant on country but where I am in europe this is drastically untrue, and data scientists are paid (including stock) far more than software engineers.

It's also worth noting that although every position I've applied for has asked for a PhD my one year masters has sufficed in every case.

[throwaway713]

Really? That's very interesting. I'm at one of F/N/G in the Bay Area. What sort of compensation do these companies in Europe offer?

[estilos]

depends, but 6 figures seems pretty normal if you're good but not in charge of anything in particular? dev salaries are lower here, maybe? but I started in data on the same salary that my been-devving-6-years girlfriend is on now after 3 raises.