Computer Programmer: Job Description, Education & Job Outlook

The field of information technology offers plenty of career opportunities for aspiring candidates. As the job title suggests, computer programmers are responsible for writing programs for computers. The programmer performs their task under the supervision of the computer software engineer. The major work responsibility of these professionals is to develop instructions to be used by computers to operate. In addition, they also see to it that computers operate appropriately well. They fix problems that may arise during running a variety of computer programs. To prepare yourself for this career and become successful, you need to be well informed of the job description, roles and responsibilities, educational qualification required, certification requirements, job skills, career prospects and employment opportunities that await you in this occupation.

 

Job Description
Computer programs are specially written codes in computer languages that instruct computers what function to perform. Programmers are responsible for writing these programs, which can be of different types. Depending on their complexity, programs can take from a few hours to a couple of years to complete. Programmers work in a team while working on complex programs. With the ongoing technical advancement, the roles of computer programs have also evolved a lot.

 

Programmers work in close contact with computer software engineers. They perform their duties according to the specification provided by software engineers. Programmers use different computer languages to write the codes. Many programmers have expertise in one major language while there are many others who are well versed with more than one computer languages. Their roles and responsibilities may be specified depending on the language they know.

 

In addition to writing fresh programming codes, programmers may also modify existing codes and programs. While doing this task, they add comments into the codes to inform others of the changes they make. After that coding has been completed, computer programmers run these programs and check them for errors. They test the programs many times to ensure the latter is completely error-free and functions appropriately well.

 

Depending on their task specialization, programmers can be classified into applications programmers and systems programmers. The job duty of application programmers is to modify programs to fulfill specific purposes. On the other hand, systems programmers are responsible for working with the computer networking and operating systems. While creating customized software, software development programmers work in close contact with other specialists.

 

Educational Qualification & Training
A bachelor's degree in computer science, computer programming or information systems is the standard educational requirement to become a computer programmer. Many candidates kick-start their career in this field with an associate's degree in computer science (or a related field) or a two-year computer programming degree. There are several vocational schools and technical colleges across the United States offering degree courses and certification in these areas of information technology. Candidates are advised to go through the detailed coursework of these training programs before getting enrolled.

 

Job Skills
Apart from having a computer science or programming degree, candidates should also possess some essential job skills to become successful in their careers. Strong logical thinking and analytical skills are essential to make the most of your career. Candidates also need to have a lot of patience, creative skills, problem solving skills, technical skills, effective communication etc. Being well versed with object-oriented languages like C++ and Java highly pays for candidates aspiring to make a successful programming career. At the same time, programmers constantly need to keep themselves abreast of the latest technology advancements and trends.

 

Job Outlook
Though the projected job growth for computer programming jobs is at an equal rate with other occupations, candidates with advanced degree, educational qualification and extensive experience will have no dearth of employment opportunities. As new technologies continue to evolve, companies will hire more and more programmers to adapt to new computer systems and computer languages.

 

Annual Salary
Salaries of computer programmers vary depending on specialization areas, work experience and the type of employer. The annual salary of these programming professionals ranges between $35,000 and $100,000. In the year 2007, programmers earned a median annual salary of around $68,080.