Welcome. High quality first post

(give this guy a cow for that?)
I want to tell you a little about how I became a java developer with a job. Maybe you find it useful.
I finished university in 2001 in biophysical chemistry. After that I worked 4.5 years as a PhD. During that time I started with java in my free-time as a hobby. Reading some tutorials and trying some small examples with a simple java IDE. During that time I liked to chat. Around the year 2000 java chat applets were all around. I wanted my own chat. And I wanted it that same day. Ofcourse because of my lack of skills it wasn't a success. So I kept on reading...always trying to use the code conventions and stuff. It took me a small year to be the proud owner of a working chat system. And then I thought...this can be better...so I wrote a second version of the chatbox (eventually I wrote 5 versions in the end). It was fun and useful.
In 2006 my work in the laboratory ended as a PhD. Then I realized that I wanted to be a programmer, not a scientist. I applied for a junior java developer job. And I had print outs of my cool chat applets and an online stratego applet I had made. A picture says more than a thousand words. I got a contract for 6 months (at a very low salary, ±850 euro / 950 dollar, lower than what I had). But hey...I got a job as a developer. If you really want a change, it is an investment in your future....it really is.
I understand that you call yourself an 'intermediate' level. That probably applies to your knowledge and skills using JavaSE. I had the same, and it was not correct. When you start with a job, you probably end up in a team of people, do all kinds of projects the same time. This project based working, like Agile/Scrum, or DevOps techniques (please look them up so you know what they mean (because you need that knowledge)), takes some time to get familiar with. When you start, you might feel a junior (which you more or less are at such moment).
If you think you have a decent knowledge of java and you are good at analyzing things in general, and you are decent in math, then you could be a good developer. Let your heart be your guide, because in the end you truly know if you are far enough to start a carreer in programming. A little hesitation is ok, it doesn't mean you aren't ready for it!)
I would hire you as a junior, because you show more passion than average.