05 Nov 09 Choosing An IT Career Path

When you’re picking the type of IT career path you want, you have to consider your options as to what is available.  Information Technology has around three basic career categories.  The education you’ll need, as well as the skill set you should develop varies between each.  So think about which sounds best to you, and which accommodates your life goals the best.

Engineering
Software engineering is a major career path within information technology.  As a software engineer your responsibility would be to creating and modifying computer applications to fit the needs of the situation.  A company would essentially hire you to convert computer software to work for them.  This is a problem solving career, as you’ll be tasked with assessing a companies needs, and tailoring their software to best serve those needs.

Consulting
Information technology consultants are always in high demand, as they provide information to businesses about how to better use IT.  A consultant assesses the companies technology needs with what sort of IT options would work best for them.  Consultants can work independently, and oftentimes will function as their own separate entities.  So a consultant job has a lot of freedom, as long as you have the proper credentials.

Analysis
Analysts are another career path.  A systems analyst is in charge of assessing a companies current IT set up, then using the information to make improvements.  So essentially you’re collecting data about how well the system in place works, and then analyzing the data to make the system work better.  An analyst will be responsible for increasing efficiency through streamlining procedures, and updating technology.  Anything that makes the company run more smoothly from an IT perspective, it’s an analyst’s job to find the solution.

Choosing your career path isn’t necessarily easy, but each offer varying levels of freedom.  Really, the deciding factor should be your personal needs and goals.  If you like to be your own boss, a more independent position like consulting might be your best bet.  Weigh the pro’s and con’s of each, and figure out what’s right for you.

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