Working in the IT Sector can be both a stimulating career choice and a well-paid one. The IT industry does not stand still and is driven by continuous innovation that serves to produce better and more efficient applications and products. There is a wealth of career options within the industry that cater for a range of skill sets and levels of qualification. As a rule, anyone considering a career in IT should be fully prepared to commit to a philosophy of lifelong learning. This is a vital trait as it will ensure that the employees’ knowledge base stays up to date with current developments within the industry and allows staff to remain effective in the workplace. This article outlines three specific career paths for IT professionals with a description of what the role entails and expected salaries.
Computer Programmer
A computer programmer will be responsible for writing code that is used to build new applications. Teams of programmers work extensively in the video game industry to build new games from inception to the final product. In general, computer programmers need to have strong coding skills and knowledge of several types of programming languages such as JavaScript, CSS, and HTML. It is important that such staff have exceptional attention to detail and work to high levels of accuracy, as the final product will have bugs or issues if it is coded incorrectly. In terms of salary, a typical computer programmer can expect to earn approximately $70k a year on average. Many employers require a degree in computer science and may ask to see a portfolio of a candidate’s coding work that demonstrates their abilities in this field.
IT Security Specialist
In 2022 cybercrime poses a clear risk to all businesses, regardless of their size or industry. Cybercriminals can use a range of attacks to damage IT systems, spread computer viruses, or steal sensitive personal information from company systems. As such, the need for highly qualified IT security specialists remains high across a range of industries and attracts high salaries. These typically range from $85k to $130k depending on experience and the sector that is worked in. As business applications become more sophisticated, multiple applications are needed to communicate with each other via APIs, and IT security specialists must ensure that they are adept at securing API gateway so that these entrance points do not become compromised by being an easy route in for hackers. This is just one role that an IT security specialist will be expected to undertake. Such IT professionals will need to undertake a variety of activities to protect their organization’s IT infrastructure from cybercrime.
Data Scientist
The field of data science has grown rapidly in the last decade as software has improved and allowed the analysis of data from multiple applications. While a data analyst may have used a spreadsheet or a database to analyze data a decade ago, today’s data scientists are able to analyze huge amounts of data and draw out meaningful insights. Applications such as Power BI are commonly used to take high volumes of data from several sources and produce high-quality information that can inform senior managers about the performance of the business. In addition, data scientists can be integral players in shaping the future direction of an organization with the insights their analysis provides. Data scientists can typically expect to earn $95k on a starting salary, rising to $130k once they reach a mid-level role.
