Software development is a career of the future.
While technological advancement and automation are sweeping across industries, rendering many jobs redundant, the software development industry continues to grow at unparalleled rates; all this new technology and automation runs on software. New tech companies are cropping up all the time, old tech companies are growing, and companies in every other sector need software developers to develop technical infrastructure to keep them alive and competitive in the digitized world.
In the United States, the software development industry is growing nearly twice as fast as the national average. And not only are software development jobs abundant – they’re well-paying, with a median salary more than double the national average. It’s clear that software development is the industry to be in, and people are starting to catch on. Everywhere you look, you can find someone or something promising to transform you into a software developer in a day, a week, a month, etc. From books to online crash courses to boot camps, there are so many outlets guaranteeing they’ll launch your career in software development, that it’s difficult to know where to start. So let’s take a step back and ask ourselves the fundamental question:
How do you get the skills you need to launch a successful career in Software Development?
Really this is two questions. First we need to identify what skills you need. Second we’ll address how to get those skills.
Many programs promising to transform you into a software developer focus on one single proficiency: “Learn html for web development”, “Master Java in 24 hours”, or “Build your own Android App.” While learning the technologies that are popular and in demand right now is useful in the short term, this approach lacks the longevity that will allow you to have a vibrant career in this field for ten, twenty, thirty years. Thriving in software development does not just require a knowledge of technologies and languages that are popular today. Employers look for candidates that can keep up with the industry – those with the capacity, desire, and confidence to learn new technologies and languages as the industry changes. Expert software developers understand the structures that exist across technologies and languages. They ask questions, and don’t just seek to master current techniques, but rather they investigate new ways of looking at and solving problems. As the industry changes and technology advances, expert software developers are constantly evolving and learning.
UBCx’s Software Development MicroMasters program sets you up to learn and think like an expert software developer. Throughout the six courses, you won’t only learn three different languages, but you will gain techniques to learn any language that comes your way. You will learn how to read programs in languages you don’t fully understand yet, and see the commonalities that exist across different languages. You will learn how to write code that doesn’t just work, but is easy to read and easy to modify – and you’ll learn why this is important. Plus you’ll come out of the program with a portfolio of projects that will demonstrate everything you’ve learned to potential employers.
In this program, some of the brightest minds at UBC, and in the software development field at large, will teach you everything you need to prepare for a career in Software Development, get the job that’s right for you, and continue learning and growing as the industry does. And with an industry as vibrant and in demand as software development, there’s no reason not to start right away.
A wide variety of such frameworks has evolved over the years, each with its own recognized strengths and weaknesses. There are several different approaches to software development: some take a more structured, engineering-based approach to develop business solutions, whereas others may take a more incremental approach, where software evolves as it is developed piece-by-piece. One system development methodology is not necessarily suitable for use by all projects. Each of the available methodologies is best suited to specific kinds of projects, based on various technical, organizational, project and team considerations.
Most methodologies share some combination of the following stages of software development:
- Analyzing the problem
- Market research
- Gathering requirements for the proposed business solution
- Devising a plan or design for the software-based solution
- Implementation (coding) of the software
- Testing the software
- Deployment
Keywords:
These stages are often referred to collectively as the software development life-cycle, or SDLC. Different approaches to software development may carry out these stages in different orders, or devote more or less time to different stages. The level of detail of the documentation produced at each stage of software development may also vary.
There are significant advantages and disadvantages to the various methodologies, and the best approach to solving a problem using software will often depend on the type of problem. If the problem is well understood and a solution can be effectively planned out ahead of time, the more “waterfall” based approach may work the best. If, on the other hand, the problem is unique (at least to the development team) and the structure of the software solution cannot be easily envisioned, then a more “extreme” incremental approach may work best.
