I'm a 24-year-old data center engineer making six figures. There are pros and cons, but my career has advanced faster than I thought.

Joseph LeGare works at a data center site in Maryland. Photo courtesy of Joseph LeGare Joseph Legare landed a six-figure data center job after a six-month-long internship. His community college had a partnership with the local data center construction company. He says deadlines, budgets, and relationships make the job more stressful than expected. This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Joseph LeGare, a 24-year-old project engineer based in Frederick County, Maryland, who works at Rowan Digital Infrastructure, a hyperscale data center developer. It has been edited for length and clarity. I studied philosophy for two years at The Catholic University of America before dropping out and working as an assistant superintendent at a construction company. After about a year, I moved into residential and did administrative work, including daily reports, county inspection scheduling, quality verification, and weekly safety meetings with foremen.