Career Options for Software Engineers

Software engineers play a major role in overseeing the design of new software products. Those who wish to widen their career options can opt for leadership roles within the IT industry. The software engineers are responsible to develop new pieces of software with a team of designers and programmers and ensure that the end product meets the requirement.  Software engineers maintain the flow of the product and write the code which makes the product operational.

Once you have worked as software engineers, many professionals will prefer to grow into other roles. They would prefer to work as a software architect, solution architect or as a chief security officer. 

• Software Architect: 

The students of BS Software Engineering (BSSE) can pursue a career as software architects. The software architects show more responsibility for product development and planning. They are involved in the initial stage of designing a new software product and are at the forefront of software development. 

They are part of the planning process and understand how different parts of software will interact on a computer system. They are mainly responsible to plan the coding of the software and then break up and give these coding tasks to themselves or others. The software architects acquire a minimum of four-year BS Software Engineering (BSSE) degree to fulfill the need of the growing software market in the country. The program offered in many institutions of Pakistan like UMT has been designed to produce professionals who have excellent problem-solving skills and can resolve complex computational problems by critically thinking and analyzing the issue. An MS A software engineer can help professionals in obtaining a position as a software architect.

• Solutions Architect: 

Software engineers also study the impact of developing software on the business as a whole. Those who want to take this lead on the business front can consider the position of solutions architect. They work dedicatedly to understand the technical problems faced by a company and are aware of the use of software and hardware integration to solve these difficulties. Solution architects are trained at listening and know the business concerns of the related industry. They are experienced enough to handle a wide range of software and hardware products. A bachelor's degree and extensive technology experience are the minimum educational criteria for solutions architects, however many business organizations prefer candidates with a master's degree or certification.

• Chief Security Officer: 

They are well aware of the security protocol when designing new pieces of software. The professionals who take these security precautions seriously and aim to increase the network security for their businesses should choose the job of a chief security officer. The Chief Security Officers are part of the top management within their companies. They design security policies and ensure that the business and IT team go well with the security processes put into place. They ensure that the privacy of the data is maintained and emphasis that employees are properly trained in company security protocols. A minimum of a bachelor's degree and relevant skill are required for these posts, however, most employers will prefer a master's degree and certification.

• Software Developers: 

They are the creative brains behind computer programs. They develop applications which help people do particular tasks on a computer or another device. Software developers analyze users' needs and then design, test, and develop software to fulfill those needs. They design each piece and plan how the pieces will work together. Also, ensure that a program continues to function normally through software maintenance and testing. They work in collaboration with other computer specialists to create optimum software.

The field of software engineering is appropriate for those students who have creative minds and want to innovate something new using computer programs. Today software engineering is playing a key role in almost every sector.