Starting a career in tech is a wise decision, but it is associated with many challenges. For once, it’s really difficult to decide on a specialty within tech. There are so many professions – from data scientist to front-end developer, and they are all different in their own ways. Also, as a beginner who’s interested in tech, it’s difficult to predict which path will be the most interesting.
Transitioning from one career to another is very common in the field of tech. In this article, we will discuss various different paths, their advantages and disadvantages. Let’s get started.
UI/UX Design
These professionals make sure that websites are easy and intuitive to use for website users. UI is short for user interfaces, in other words website structure and elements of it. UX is short for user experience. In other words, how users interact with a web application.
Someone working in the field of UI/UX design must have a good eye for design and making sure that websites are convenient. Person working in this position will be tasked with prototyping and creating mockups of the web application.
Knowing design tools like Adobe Photoshop and hard technical skills like HTML and CSS can go a long way. There are also wireframing and prototyping tools which you need to know.
Frontend development
This is a more technical field than UI/UX design. In this role, you will have to build website interfaces. In other words, define basic functions and appearance of a website.
This career path does not require you to have strong design skills. You need to have a strong proficiency in JavaScript. Also, strong knowledge in CSS and HTML is mandatory.
Best thing is, you can start with basic knowledge. Junior React developers only need to know basics, like how to handle onchange in React.
Backend development
This is the most technical specialization of those listed here. It involves creating algorithms and other basic code which will be the ‘brains’ of web and native applications. In this role, you might have to create an API or even maintain databases. API will process requests from other devices, do calculations and provide an answer.
Go for this role if you like maths, writing algorithms, and processing data.
Cybersecurity
These days companies collect large volumes of data. Cybersecurity professionals are people tasked with protecting that data. Also you will need to ensure that applications continue running and are not turned off by cyber attacks.
A typical tasks for cybersecurity professional is to test, analyze and develop protection against possible attacks. Sometimes individuals in this role even have to play a role of a hacker to try breaking down defenses of a website or an online service. This is done to detect possible gaps in the defense and then working to fill those gaps.
Graphic design
This career is not very technical. It is only on this list because it involves the use of advanced software. Go for this role if you’re good with computers but also love art and drawing yourself. Graphic designers create beautiful visuals to highlight the brand and for marketing campaigns.