I used Ubuntu in my college for some light programming and felt really happy about it.
I am more interested in switching to Debian 12 than Ubuntu, since the former is really stable. Also, I came to know installing Debian is easier since it supports non free firmware.
Shouldn’t be an issue. I see people recommending other distros but it doesn’t sound like you are asking about that at all.
It also sounds like you understand the catch with Debian: older packages stick around for a bit. But, you can go to Testing or Sid.