Nobody knows how burnt out you are, or how much you're making, so it's a toss up whether you'd really be stepping off the software gravy train or not. Also I don't know the SW business well enough to know if a SRE is a full blown programmer.
I'm a physical scientist, was working in a HW role, and moved to an R&D group where I make extensive use of my programming skills. So I've gone the opposite way. While I do a lot of work in the lab and the factory, if I got hit by a bus, my replacement would need to be a good programmer. I think I'm compensated accordingly.
What I've observed is that anybody who's good enough at programming to do it for money, will eventually be doing so. An option might be for you to up your programming game by getting some more formal training, which your employer might even pay for. This would give you more options in the SW business.
You can expose yourself to the hardware world through a hobby, but it can't turn you into an engineer. Also, the "hard" engineering disciplines require you to get through the full math sequence. Since you're out of school, you'll probably want to brush up on your high school math. Taking the SAT or ACT would be a good way to find out where you stand.
I'm a physical scientist, was working in a HW role, and moved to an R&D group where I make extensive use of my programming skills. So I've gone the opposite way. While I do a lot of work in the lab and the factory, if I got hit by a bus, my replacement would need to be a good programmer. I think I'm compensated accordingly.
What I've observed is that anybody who's good enough at programming to do it for money, will eventually be doing so. An option might be for you to up your programming game by getting some more formal training, which your employer might even pay for. This would give you more options in the SW business.
You can expose yourself to the hardware world through a hobby, but it can't turn you into an engineer. Also, the "hard" engineering disciplines require you to get through the full math sequence. Since you're out of school, you'll probably want to brush up on your high school math. Taking the SAT or ACT would be a good way to find out where you stand.