With the world getting more and more dependent on computer technologies and IT playing an ever more significant role in our lives, computer science rapidly becomes more and more specialized. In a sense, it undergoes the same process as other sciences went through as they became more and more complex. The difference is that with them it took decades and even centuries, while with computer science it seems that new fields and areas of expertise appear every few years. It is no longer enough to be an IT specialist — a person willing to build a career in this field has to choose which specialized sphere she is going to work in, and with rapidly changing industry landscape it is not an easy task. We have gathered a list of a few of the most promising computer science jobs you can use as a road map to steer your career over the next decade.
1. Machine learning engineering
Machine learning is currently one of the most innovative and promising IT fields, pushing the entire industry forward and opening up opportunities that even a decade ago would have seemed straight out of science fiction. The number of computer science jobs in this field grows with every passing year, as companies from new and old industries start to see a potential application of this technology for the achievement of their goals. The job of such a specialist is to create, improve and deploy systems that are capable of automatic learning and independent improvement.
2. Mobile game development
Over the last three decades, video game development went from occupying a place on the fringes of the entertainment industry to turning into a $100-plus billion behemoth that plays an incredibly important role in modern society, culture, and life in general. The market for PC and console games is booming, having more than tripled over the last decade, but the mobile revolution led to the emergence of an entire new increasingly promising field — mobile gaming. As smartphones and tablets become ever more ubiquitous, they change the way video games are played and perceived, creating an increasing demand for them, and the development of augmented reality technology can give it an entirely new spin. The quality of products for mobile platforms is also increasing, turning them from mindless time killers to spend a few minutes while waiting in a queue into full-fledged games — even leading to the appearance of emulators like NoxPlayer that allow to play them on PC. All this shows that programmers with experience in mobile development aimed at gaming are certainly not going to be out of a job in the next decade.
3. IT security
As information technology permeates all aspects of our life today, it is hardly surprising that IT security issues acquire a new degree of importance. As tech grows more sophisticated, so do the methods of criminals. While in the past IT dangers were largely isolated threats that people encountered at random, today IT crime is an entire shadow industry that constantly evolves. Companies and other organizations are often subjected to massive targeted, well-organized attacks, hackers work in groups and offer their services to businesses and governments — in other words, we live in the world that is just a couple of steps behind what we’ve used to see only in cyberpunk fiction. All this places an increasing strain on the security of any company that is willing to play it safe and protect itself from potentially catastrophic consequences of a breach. And naturally, it requires highly qualified specialists to guarantee that breaches won’t happen.
4. Software development
While in the past software development was largely associated with the creation of specialized program products for personal computers, today software is getting ever more ubiquitous. The emergence of the Internet of Things means that in a short while we are going to be surrounded by hosts of smart devices, all of which will require programming to work properly and interact with each other as intended. The mobile revolution created an entire new sub-industry dedicated to the development of software for mobile devices — this new change in paradigm is likely to cause even more explosive growth of demand for skilled software engineers.
5. Web development
These days a business without some kind of online representation may just as well not exist at all. And even the companies that have already brought their offerings to the Internet are constantly looking for new ways to engage with their current and potential customers using the World Wide Web. The ever-increasing role of social media calls for a growing demand for web development specialists as businesses are trying to get a competitive advantage using these promotion methods. Companies are getting more and more interested in the development of optimal user experience, which calls for experts in the user interface and responsive web design.
6. Network administration
As businesses invest in new technologies and network systems to improve the productivity of their employees and ensure that they are able to work in close collaboration with each other, they are going to need more people specializing at setting up, maintaining and upgrading such systems. Growing usage of smartphones and tablets as a part of “bring your own device” culture means new challenges to be tackled and new job opportunities for those who are capable of doing it.
7. Project management
IT is getting increasingly team-oriented industry as Agile methodologies become the mainstay for those who work in this sphere. IT project managers oversee the work of a team of programmers and analysts to ensure that they stay on the chosen course of action, deliver the results on time and do it in a coordinated manner. As IT projects grow larger in scope, the need for experienced specialists capable of maintaining effective collaboration among numerous individuals is going to increase as well, creating many new job openings.
Computer science jobs: A variety of choices
The IT sector has never been as rapidly growing and promising as it is today. The variety of choices open for anybody willing to pursue a career in this field is mind-boggling – and a choice you make right now can define the direction your life will take for a very long time, so be careful about it.
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