Software engineering is one of the newest developments in its field. Software engineers design and build computer systems and applications from the bottom up. As technology takes over the world, software engineering is currently and, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, should continue to be a pretty lucrative career choice with plenty of need in the job market. Here’s a look at some of the jobs available to someone with a software engineering degree.
Most software engineers are one of two types: computer systems or computer applications. Computer systems software engineers design whole systems (generally for a company) to meet the specific needs of the company, being mindful of potential future needs as well as security necessities. Computer applications software engineers make applications and utility programs that perform particular services or meet certain needs.
Most careers in either specialty require only a bachelor’s degree, although some jobs do call for a master’s. The goal of a software engineering degree is to be able to understand systems and application engineering in such a way that allows engineers to continually do their job well as technology improves and new coding languages come about.
Software Engineer
There are many different aspects of a being a software engineer. Like most jobs, you generally have to start at the bottom and work your way up—but this doesn’t mean you don’t have to have the knowledge and training to do the upper tier jobs when you start. Corporate software engineering often works this way. Depending on the software being developed, there may be different roles software engineers can fill.
You might start out as a programmer (putting in the computer codes to make the program work). Eventually, you’ll likely move up to designing algorithms, creating improvements to projects, running tests to see if a program or app is working like expected, getting finished projects out into the market, or doing maintenance work to keep them running. You could design the part the consumer comes into contact with, create security aspects, or supply the internal scripts a program needs. Software engineer opportunities may include creating, testing, or maintaining Facebook apps, smartphone apps, game apps, and other systems and applications.
Software Architect
It can take a lot of work to become a software architect. Just like an architect who turns blueprints into buildings, software architects turn project ideas into functioning programs and applications. They begin with the end goal in mind and focus on what special requirements are necessary for it to perform its job, then, they have to make that happen.
Embedded Software Engineering
Computers are in more than just our computers now. What? Yes, all of the different machines that we need to function every day—from a flat screen TV to an ATM—have computers in them. Each of these computers has an operating system, just like a normal computer, and some might have special applications. Embedded software engineers help build and design these unique devices we don’t tend to recognize as computers.
Cyber Security Manager
While this job is a little different from other software engineering positions, it is just as important. Rather than creating the system or application itself, cyber security managers are there to keep the systems and applications safe. While they might create security programs, they might also help other professionals provide and practice strong security. According to Software Engineer Insider, an example of “a typical duty is writing code that checks for inputs and rejects code that doesn’t follow the typical (and accepted) format.”
