I'm 16 and thinking seriously about my future. I originally wanted to become a general surgeon, but I know that path requires many years of study and can be expensive. Since I'm interested in programming and game development, I'm wondering whether starting now could eventually help me earn money, build a portfolio, or support myself financially.
I'm not interested in programming only because of money—I genuinely want to learn it—but I would like to develop useful skills for side jobs, freelancing, or possibly creating a game someday. I already have a small crocheting side business and hope to grow it too. I still plan to pursue medicine, although I'm curious whether programming could become another career option or simply a valuable hobby. Is starting this early worthwhile, and how realistic is it to earn money from these skills?
4 Answers
You can absolutely study programming as a hobby, but becoming job-ready usually takes sustained effort over several years. Don’t feel pressured to choose between medicine and programming immediately. Try beginner courses, build small projects, and see whether you enjoy solving programming problems enough to keep going. That experience can help you decide whether it should remain a hobby or become a serious career alternative.
Programming can be useful, but game development is usually a difficult and uncertain way to make money. It often takes a long time to become employable, and successful games normally require a strong idea, lots of work, funding, marketing, or luck. If your main goal is earning on the side, general software development, web tools, or automation may offer more practical opportunities. Keep game development as a passion project if that’s what interests you.
Learning almost any useful skill early can pay off, even if it never becomes your main job. Programming can improve problem-solving and give you another way to create products or earn money later. At the same time, becoming a surgeon requires a huge amount of time and focus, so don’t let side projects interfere with your education. Treat programming as a gradual experiment rather than a guaranteed source of income.
Starting early is definitely an advantage. You’ll have more time to experiment, build projects, and discover whether you actually enjoy the work. Money doesn’t have to be your only motivation either—wanting a stable career is a perfectly reasonable reason to study. Just focus on learning consistently and creating things rather than expecting quick income.
That makes sense. I’m mainly curious whether it could be beneficial, but I’ll try some small projects first and see if I enjoy it enough to continue seriously.