Career
Software developers
Build systems. Solve problems. Create things that scale.
Here's what you actually need to know.
The work
What people in this job do
- Analyze user needs and software requirements to determine feasibility of design within time and cost constraints.
- Develop or direct software system testing or validation procedures, programming, or documentation.
- Confer with systems analysts, engineers, programmers and others to design systems and to obtain information on project limitations and capabilities, performance requirements and interfaces.
- Modify existing software to correct errors, adapt it to new hardware, or upgrade interfaces and improve performance.
- Prepare reports or correspondence concerning project specifications, activities, or status.
The outlook
How the forecast changed this year
AI
Last year BLS cited AI in this outlook; this year's table does not. That is not evidence the job is unaffected.
The deeper question
What kind of person does this path ask you to become?
What this work centers on
O*NET interest profile, scored 1–7.
The work
Do you want most of your days spent on ideas & analysis, then information & systems?
Responsibility
Are you willing to be the one responsible for this?
“Analyze user needs and software requirements to determine feasibility of design within time and cost constraints.”
Development
What would you need to build over the next 5–10 years?
Programming, Critical Thinking, Judgment and Decision Making, Systems Analysis.
Trade-offs
What does it ask of you in exchange?
4 years of education after high school (bachelor's degree), for a median of $135,980 a year and 95,300 openings nationally each year.
Paths in
Degrees that lead here
- Computer and Information SciencesSee the degree →
- Computer ScienceSee the degree →
- Computer EngineeringSee the degree →
- Information ScienceSee the degree →
- Artificial IntelligenceCIP 11.0102
- Information TechnologyCIP 11.0103
Paths across
Careers that use similar skills
- Computer Systems Engineers/Architects
- Computer Systems Analysts$105,850 · +7.9%
- Software Quality Assurance Analysts and Testers$104,300 · +5.7%
- Computer Programmers$100,390 · -7.3%
- Database Administrators$104,620 · -0.1%
Ask anything about this career.
“Would this make sense if I don't want to sit at a desk all day?” Answers will come from the sources on this page, with citations. Coming soon.
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Sources
- BLS Employment Projections, 2025–35, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- BLS Employment Projections, 2024–34 (archived), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- O*NET 31.0 Database (August 2026), National Center for O*NET Development / U.S. Department of Labor. Retrieved 2026-10-01.
- CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 Crosswalk, NCES and BLS. Retrieved 2026-10-01.