Exploring the Benefits & Opportunities of a Career in Coding
Knowledge and skills in coding can open doors to a wide range of career opportunities. Even if you decide not to pursue a career in programming, having coding knowledge can still be relevant to the career you do choose to pursue. Knowing how to code makes you more adaptable, potentially get a better salary, and helps you progress up the career ladder.
Coders or computer programmers have greater flexibility to choose the career path they want to take. They can choose to either work formally as an employee or be self-employed as a freelancer. In both cases, you can work from the convenience of your home (or anywhere, for that matter) as long as you have a computer and access to the internet. Being a coder can be a great career path either way.
On one hand, companies offer very competitive salaries for highly skilled coders. And on the other, you could find freelance clients on a per project basis, both short-term and long-term. As a freelancer, you may eventually turn your freelancing gigs into a formal business and hire other coders to work on larger projects.
What is a career in coding?
A career in coding can mean you’re either employed by a public or private company, or you have a freelance career that might become a business. It requires advanced knowledge and skills in various high-level programming languages.
You also need to be proficient in using various software platforms, such as an integrated development environment, or IDE. An IDE is a software platform that consists of all the necessary tools for writing a program, such as source code editor, build automation tools, and a debugger.
Aside from writing computer programs and doing other computer-related tasks, a career in coding may also involve managing people. As you go up in the career ladder, you’ll likely not only work with a team of programmers, but may also manage a team of programmers. Your day-to-day tasks may vary as well, from working on routine tasks to more ambitious projects, such as developing AI systems for large corporations.
Why start a career in coding?
In many cases, you don’t need an advanced degree or even formal education in coding to start a career as a programmer. What really matters is your provable knowledge and skills.
You need to be able to demonstrate your competence in solving specific problems in programming. Many companies hire coders and programmers based on their actual skills rather than on their formal education. You can actually learn programming by reading books, following online tutorials, and simply practicing.
A career in coding is also a career that’s likely to be less vulnerable to obsolescence, even with the rise of AI, the Internet of Things, machine learning, and automation systems.
Programmers will always be needed to write, debug, test, and implement programs. They’ll be in demand across types of industries and sectors, including banking and finance, international trade, the sciences, and the military - plus a lot more.
How to start a career in coding
Just like in other careers, starting a career in coding requires extensive preparation, which may even start in your childhood or early teens. You need to learn the necessary competencies and build your portfolio. Here are some of the steps you might need to take to pursue a career in coding.
1. Pick a desired industry
Since there’s such a wide scope for coders as they’re needed across many different types of industries, try honing in on an industry you’re particularly interested in. For example, would you prefer to work in the government or private sector? What type of tasks do you want to perform? Is it more on writing or debugging codes? Do you want to work in software development for business use or for national defense use? Your options are wide and varied, so it’s a good idea to have some sort of plan.
2. Research the coding languages you may need
Typically, you need to learn as many coding languages as possible. However, it’s best to concentrate on one or a few programming languages that you actually need for your work. For example, if your desired job has something to do with web development, you should be highly proficient in web development programming languages like Java, JavaScript, and Objective-C. You also need to be highly skilled in markup languages such as HTML and CSS.
3. Plan a route
Having a clear understanding of the specific necessary steps to take to achieve your career goals will help you achieve them. This may start in education. For example, you may take a course in college or university in computer science. Or you may simply learn informally on your own by reading books, watching video tutorials, and practicing. Another alternative is applying for an apprenticeship. Again, the bottom line is that you develop your core competencies and become proficient in different programming languages.
4. Complete a qualification
Becoming qualified as a computer programmer may require you to finish a course in higher education related to programming, either vocational or degree course. You may also need to take professional regulatory exams or government certifications, depending on your local regulations. Even after you graduate, you may need to take additional training, which may include either internship or on-the-job training as an apprentice.
The benefits of knowing how to code
Knowing how to code will help you in many ways, more than in your career in computer programming. For example, whether you pursue a career in the sciences or in finance and trade, you could use your coding knowledge to automate mundane tasks.
For instance, you might write a program that integrates different data collection units for a scientific research project. Knowing how to code is also a plus point for promotion.
What jobs can you have with coding?
Computer coding or programming can be a lucrative career. In the US, the median wage for an entry-level programmer is around $85,000 per year. Job opportunities vary depending on the specific skills that you have in programming. However, you’ll probably have a wide range of options, including non-computer-related jobs.
Here are some of the best career opportunities for programmers:
- Web developer - the role covers creating, developing, and maintaining websites and related services. You need to create dynamic websites that are user-friendly and highly functional for the needs of the company and customers.
- Mobile app developer - responsible for creating applications for mobile devices, perhaps including games or business applications.
- Software engineer - responsible for developing various applications for specific business or government needs. You’ll likely work with a team of developers in writing, testing, debugging, and compiling programs.
- IT security analyst - your main task is to protect the computer systems of a company against malwares, hacking, and other forms of attacks.
- Data scientist - as a data scientist, you can work for companies that require large amounts of data, such as search engines and social media companies. You will be tasked with data mining and analysis, among other things.
Summary
The benefits and opportunities of a career in coding are diverse and wide-ranging. You’ll potentially have access to lucrative job opportunities and flexible work arrangement as either a freelancer or a full time employee. You need to have the proper competencies and training to be qualified - and it all starts with coding education.
Are you an educator looking for coding resources for middle school, high school or university? Take a look at Arduino Education kits and how they can support your hands-on coding lessons.