If you are currently in the process of deciding on your future career or are considering a career change, the field of tech might be quite appealing. Tech careers, especially those in programming or software engineering, are becoming easier for people with an interest in this field to get into, and offer lots of different opportunities, progression and advancement, job security, and other benefits.
Career as a Developer: The Top Reasons
Some of the main reasons to consider a career working as a developer include:
High Demand for Tech Professionals
Tech jobs are growing and they are certainly here to stay, with the world in desperate need of people who have a strong technical background and skills. With technology advancing and evolving every day, currently there just aren’t enough people who have the skills and experience necessary to satisfy the demand. With the demand and ideas for new software products higher than the number of people who have the skill-set to build them, it’s clear to see why this is a great career field to get into if you want to find work right away and enjoy a high level of job security. While machines can be used for some of the work, programming and development is a role that often requires creative thinking – something that even the most advanced AI can’t yet replicate on the same level of humans. Machines simply don’t have the same capacity for a deeper understanding of human needs that will often make a successful developer.
Great Earning Potential
Deciding to become a developer means that you have great earning potential – from the moment that you start studying. Most students today need to work while they study, but as a student of computer science or software engineering, you don’t have to work in retail or hospitality; many students will work in the field of technology right from the start. While getting your masters in computer science online from a school like Baylor University, you could find work in programming, IT support, freelance coding, web development, and much more. There are endless opportunities to pursue and studying computer science will provide you with the basic skills necessary to succeed in any of these fields. There are also lots of freelance opportunities that are available to computer science students, which can be ideal for fitting around your classes and could even be turned into your own business in the future.
Great Starting Salaries
The earning potential for developers and other tech professionals is high, but how much do these professionals actually earn? According to reports from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average salary for a software developer back in 2015 was over $98k per year. And, the average salary is growing over time, with the highest paid software developers in the same year earning over $150k annually. Today, starting salaries for this profession are much higher compared to many others, with junior developers earning around $80k per year or even more after just a year of experience in the field.
Tailor Your Job to Your Interests and Passions
If you’re passionate about something other than computer science, one of the best things about working in this field is that you can work in almost any industry and definitely find a job that is in line with what you are most interested in. For example, if you’re passionate about beauty, as a software developer you could find yourself developing a website or app that helps users find the best skincare or cosmetics products for them. With tech now playing a huge part of every aspect of our lives, it’s easier than ever to combine your knowledge and skills in computer science and programming with a huge range of industries including entertainment, movies and TV, fashion and beauty, art, home décor and design, sports, marketing, business, pets, food, and anything else.
Developers might be able to find work developing and maintaining an app or website for their favorite sports team, for example. Or, if you love cooking, you might go on to develop software that helps people find new recipes or share their own. When you have computer science skills, there are so many different areas where they are in demand, so finding work that enables you to focus on both developing and an industry that you’re interested in is often easy.
Career Progression
With a unique set of opportunities available to them, software developers are in a great career when it comes to progression and advancement opportunities. When it comes to moving up the ladder in this career, the sky is the limit. Even if you never move away from coding for your entire career path, there are still plenty of opportunities for you to continue growing in your career and moving up the ranks. And, for developers who want to get away from coding, there are plenty of management careers to consider, including software engineering management roles. Developers can move up in this field to become successful business owners, consultants, executives, public speakers, tutors and mentors, and a range of other higher-level roles. When it comes to the career growth opportunities for those who study computer science, there really are no limits to be worried about. And with technology now a key part of everyday life, you don’t have to limit yourself to working in the tech industry since good, experienced tech professionals are now needed almost everywhere.
Continue Learning New Things
With tech evolving at a faster rate than most of us can keep up with, there is certainly always something new coming around the corner for today’s developers to learn and master. If you love the idea of a challenging job where you can learn new things all the time, computer science is a field worth considering. Even when you know all the different coding languages there is today, there’s no reason why there might not be another one to learn in the future.
If you’re wondering where to take your career and are interested in tech, training as a developer can be an ideal opportunity to consider, with great pay, opportunities, and demand.
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