the life of a software developer

In all the collected works of William Shakespeare, the word “engineer” appears exactly once, in Hamlet, Act 3 Scene 4. You’ll notice that the word itself greatly preceded the clinking clanking combustion engine as we know it. In the 1500s an “engineer” was someone crafty with mechanical things (in Hamlet’s use, a sapper; a military engineer burrowing beneath the enemy’s walls to set explosive charges). 

The Engineer Hoist with His Own Petard

Shakespeare’s petard is a land mine. No engineer, then or now, wants to fall victim to his own ingenuity (yes, to blow himself up with his own bomb). The world has little use for engineering skills of yesteryear, so the mathematically and science-minded person today looks to the future, in jobs like software engineering and software development. Becoming an accomplished software engineer is a process, not an overnight victory. Having a clear goal is a good beginning; having a clear plan to achieve it is strategy. 

Software is not an engine, so becoming a software engineer means applying your own insight and learned skills to novel problems. In a sense, though, software is like an engine, in that it drives our economy. Hardly anything functions independent of computers and the software that run them. Financial sectors, manufacturing, basic research, and communications industries all depend on software. Behind that software are software engineers. 

But Dawning Day New Comfort Hath Inspired

The Bard of Avon did not write that line in Titus Andronicus to herald the new day for a typical software engineer. He wrote of the title character leading a dawn hunt, but becoming a software engineer really is a bit of a hunt. You are always looking for opportunity, greater efficiency, faster solutions, and economical advantages that propel your company ahead of the competition. Part of your growth as a software developer is learning the ins and outs of how an entire business runs, not just your department. 

No Legacy is So Rich as Honesty

Shakespeare wrote this in All’s Well That Ends Well nearly 500 years ago, but it still rings true today: Behaving ethically should not be an afterthought. A properly trained software engineer has the professional bearing and internal moral compass to work with propriety. With the power of software engineering comes a responsibility, too, to treat customers and coworkers respectfully, since part of any software developer’s job is to handle sensitive data. 

On your way to becoming a proficient and respected software developer, make certain you learn fundamentals that cut across all trades: 

  • Ethical practice
  • Logic
  • Decision-making
  • Problem resolution

Sure, pin up all the Dilbert cartoons you like, but the real world thirsts for software developers who strive to improve customer experiences, treat people with dignity, and protect everyone's privacy. 

O Brave New World That has Such People In't!

When sweet Miranda utters this words of genuine astonishment in The Tempest, she might just as well be speaking of software developers, whose amazing skills and artful use of technology can dazzle any appreciative audience, from C-suite executives to grateful customers. 

Becoming proficient in software development means being as much of a master of computer languages as Shakespeare was a master of English:

  • Android
  • BigTable
  • C#
  • Google App Engine
  • iOS
  • Java 
  • jQuery
  • MongoDB
  • Objective-C
  • Python

Yet software development is more than good technical skills. You need communication and interpersonal skills, like knowing how to write for different audiences and how to provide impeccable customer service training. 

We Be Men of Good Government

software developer median annual salaryThe Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) appears nowhere in Shakespeare’s Henry IV, Part I, though men of good government do. The BLS comprises many women and men of good government tracking software developers, including their salaries and job prospects: 

This is just the industry average; if you work as a software engineer at a company specializing in computers and electronic products, you might expect a median annual wage of $109,810. But of course, you cannot reach this peak earning power without solid education and a wide range of talents: 

  • Knowing how to analyze customer requirements
  • Developing mobile, web, and cloud applications
  • Integrating a company’s system with relational databases (Oracle, MySQL) and non-relational databases (BigTable, MongoDB)
  • Applying your knowledge of information assurance to designing secure applications

O This Learning, What a Thing it Is!

With apologies to Shakespeare’s Taming of the Shrew, learning to become a software engineer is a wonderful thing. An excellent place to start your path to success as a software engineer is at ECPI University, where you could acquire your Bachelor of Science degree in Computer and Information Science with a Concentration in Software Development in as little as 2.5 years by attending classes year-round. Contact ECPI University today to see how you can set out on a path, if not to fame, at least to good fortune. It could be the Best Decision You Ever Make!

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Gainful Employment Information – Software Development - Bachelor’s

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