Advice on career change required

[isvicbhasme]

Hi I got into a good company from college campus placements. I have been very interested in software development & thus I was expecting to be a software developer in this company. Unfortunately most of my batch mates except me got to be software developers & I was made to be a test engineer.

It has been exactly 1yr since I've joined this company. At first I thought that as days go by I'll get used to being a test engineer & forget about becoming a developer. But that did not work out for me. Now since my current work has almost nothing to do with software development I am afraid to say that I have wasted 1 yr.

I am now thinking of doing a short-term course in programming in order to prove my skills to be a developer and apply for a job in another company.

Do you think that it is adviceable to change my carrier now?
If I choose to change my career will companies look upon me as a "fresher" or as an "experienced" candidate?