Application Developers: How to Become One

If you were to ask a group of application developers about how they arrived at their current job, there's a good chance you would get several different answers about the paths and steps that each person took.

That said, there are still ways that you can develop a baseline understanding of the preparation that is necessary to become one.

The Best Adult Colleges and Careers Guide has gathered data to provide you with insight into the type of education that's commonly required for application developers to land a job. This page contains information, sourced from real job postings, that describes the experience levels and specific skills that employers of application developers expect candidates to have. In the end, this information will help you create an education or professional development plan that aligns with your career aspirations.

Keep reading to learn more about career steps for application developers.

What Education & Experience is Needed for Application Developers?

Do application developers need a degree? What kind of experience do application developers typically need? Thanks to data sourced from Lightcast™ from real job postings, we can get some clarity on those questions, as well as the level of education that is commonly required for application developers to secure jobs.

Education Level Required in Job Postings for Application Developers

A bachelor's degree is the level of education sought the most by employers of application developers. According to job data, a bachelor's degree was required for 48% of positions. In 32% of job listings no education level was listed and in 14% of postings a master's degree was required.

Experience Level Required in Job Postings for Application Developers

While the amount of required experience will vary based on the responsibility and seniority of the position, an aggregate view of job posting data can help paint a picture of the experience level sought for most job openings for application developers. In 40% of job postings for Application Developers, employers were looking for candidates with 4-6 years of experience. In 21% of listings employers were looking for candidates with 2-3 years of experience, while 7-9 years of experience was sought in 20% of job postings for application developers.

What Kind of Degree Do Application Developers Need?

So far this page has provided detail into the level of education and the amount of experience required in job openings for application developers, but what type of education or degree will help prepare you for a career in the field?

According to occupational data obtained through Lightcast,™ there are 32 key academic programs that can help prepare prospective application developers, and in 2023 a total of 256,271 of those programs were completed at institutions in the United States.

Check out the information below to learn more about the specific programs that should be considered by prospective application developers.

Top Degree Programs for Application Developers

What Skills Do Application Developers Need?

Education and experience have been covered, so what are the specific skills and traits needed by application developers to secure a job?

A good way to understand this is to examine actual job postings for skills commonly sought by employers. Continue reading for a breakdown of specialized skills found in job postings for application developers, as well as common skills that can help you thrive in the workplace.

In-Demand Skills for Today's Application Developers
Based on 764,542 job postings

Based on 764,542 job postings related to application developers, computer science was the top specialized skill sought by employers, with 38% of all postings looking for that skillset. Skills for software engineering, agile methodology, software development, java (programming language) and sql (programming language) were also highly sought.

As for common skills, communication was the most desired skill found in job postings for application developers, followed by management, problem solving, troubleshooting (problem solving), leadership and operations.

Additional Links

Ready to dig deeper into career information about application developers? Visit our other pages focused on salary and education for application developers.

What do application developers do?
How much do application developers make?

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