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Rizki Hassan

From Computer Science Student to Senior Software Engineer

Last updated: Jul 2, 2025

Software Engineer in Software & Information Technology · Singapore

Software engineer with 17 years of lived career experience across product teams. I share my career journey honestly — the late-night incidents, the reviews that hurt, and the small habits that compounded. Started from a tier-2 college and built credibility one PR at a time.

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Career Timeline

Education2005-2009
Computer Science Student
National University of Singapore
Studied computer science at National University of Singapore. Spent more time on side projects than coursework, which paid off and hurt my marks at the same time. Joined the…
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ContextStudied computer science at National University of Singapore. Spent more time on side projects than coursework, which paid off and hurt my marks at the same time. Joined the coding club, lost most contests, learned to read others code.
ChallengesFelt behind classmates who had been coding since school. Hostel life, tight budget, and a creeping sense that the syllabus did not match what real teams shipped.
LearningsReading code matters more than writing more code. Asking dumb questions in tutorial is cheap; staying silent is expensive. A weekend project beats a perfect resume bullet.
OutcomeGraduated with a campus offer and one open-source contribution that mattered more than any certificate.
Skills acquired
Data structuresalgorithmsOS conceptsDBMSJavaPythonteam projects
AdviceShip one small thing every semester that is your own. It compounds.
First Job2009-2011
Junior Software Engineer
Sea Group
Joined Sea Group as a junior engineer on a customer-facing product. First six months were mostly bug tickets and reading legacy code. Slowly took on small features.
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ContextJoined Sea Group as a junior engineer on a customer-facing product. First six months were mostly bug tickets and reading legacy code. Slowly took on small features.
ChallengesImposter syndrome was loudest in design reviews. Estimation was a guess. Production incidents at 2am rewired what I thought engineering was about.
LearningsCode is a means to a user outcome, not the outcome. Senior engineers are not faster typers — they delete more code. Logs are love letters to future you.
OutcomeOwned a small module by month 14. Earned trust through small, reliable PRs.
Skills acquired
GitAgilecode reviewJavaScriptReactNode.jsREST APIsunit testing
Promotion2011-2014
Software Engineer
Sea Group
Promoted after two years. Started mentoring interns and owning end-to-end features. Began writing RFCs and reading production metrics with intent.
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ContextPromoted after two years. Started mentoring interns and owning end-to-end features. Began writing RFCs and reading production metrics with intent.
ChallengesLetting go of writing all the code myself. Saying no to scope creep without sounding like a blocker.
LearningsDesign reviews are negotiation, not just architecture. Clear writing beats clever code. Your calendar tells the truth about your priorities.
OutcomeLed a customer-facing migration on schedule with zero downtime. Hired two engineers I am still proud to have backed.
Skills acquired
System designmentoringcode reviewobservabilityTypeScriptPostgreSQL
Promotion2014-Present
Senior Software Engineer
Spotify
Switched to Spotify for scope and equity. Owning architecture for a platform serving millions. Cross-team collaboration is now half the job.
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ContextSwitched to Spotify for scope and equity. Owning architecture for a platform serving millions. Cross-team collaboration is now half the job.
ChallengesOnboarding to a new org humbles you fast. New jargon, new politics, new on-call rota. Trust takes months, not weeks.
LearningsSenior is not a coding title; it is an accountability title. The best lever is sometimes saying the boring thing in a meeting nobody likes.
OutcomeSet technical direction for two squads. Wrote the on-call playbook the team now actually uses.
Skills acquired
Cloud architecturedistributed systemsleadershipstakeholder management
AdvicePick managers, not companies. Title inflation chases bad managers.

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Rizki Hassan

Career Timeline

Computer Science Student

Junior Software Engineer

Software Engineer

Senior Software Engineer

Reflections & Questions from Readers