Careers in the digital world beckon

Designing simplicity With the world becoming increasingly dependent on mobiles, it’s the perfect time to be a mobile app developer. Subhash Agarwal gives pointers on taking up this exciting career.

Mobile web surfing is fading away thanks to the development of apps. The fastest growing generations of mobile phones are changing the world of communication.

An average internet user now spends 9 percent more time using mobile applications than the internet. The usage of mobile has become so high that almost all the industries – entertainment, lifestyle, education, telecom – are developing mobile and game apps.

Thanks to this, the accessibility has become easier and product demand is on an all-time high. According to a news report, India is one of the world’s fastest growing mobile phone markets, having relatively larger number of mobile connections than landline phones, computers or TVs.

Consequently, career opportunities are gearing up in the field of app development, design, testing, monetisation, programming and software analytics.

There is a plenty of work for people of all experience levels in app development. But first, one should understand and identify the work and profile.

Engineers and designers are required for mobile app development. Android app development is a big career boost for students and it may even overcome the Apple market. Android software and app development explores many job profiles for the IT sector.

These roles are not confined to the mobile application development, but also cater to hardware solutions like android customisation or optimisation, device drivers, analysis etc.

Learning qualifications
You need specialised training to be a good app designer. Training institutes help you gain a wider perspective of the whole process. The live training experience helps you exercise your creative skills practically, which is essentially required to gain proficiency in android programming.

Since Android application development is a new domain, classroom training makes it a holistic experience for all those who want to acquire the know-how about the subject.

But only a course would not suffice. For a successful career in mobile app world, one should know the importance of delivery mechanism in an app. To have a simple app, a complex yet proficient back end is required.

Apps are not just restricted to the games domain; there are now informational, social networking, shopping, news, marketing, travel, music, professional apps and much more.

There is a necessary trait of advanced and sharp mindset which will help to keep up with the dynamic field. One should have the desire to be able to learn at a rapid pace and stay up to date with technologies.

Qualities needed
While many companies have job listings for programmers on specific platforms (such as iOS or Android), many also say that the platform is less important –
especially long-term – than just the ability to program.

There are many things in mobile that are changing rapidly. There is an unpredictable say about how the mobile market is going to look like in five to ten years.

Recruiters in such field are looking for people who are not just developers, but those who are problem-solvers and can pick up on technologies quickly.

The ability to solve problems is also a key in such a young industry. There is a constant need to adapt because working in such an industry means working on so many different things. Flexibility will take you places in this field.

You need to be ready to face any dynamic challenge that comes up during programming. While most android applications are written in Java, an adept android professional should have the basic knowledge of Java, HTML and other general languages.

Developers who know the principles of object-oriented programming and understand user interface perfectly will have an advantage over others. A proficient programmer should be able to juggle between languages effortlessly, since Android apps development demands learning a new syntax.

Innovative thinking will spell success for an android programmer.
Communication skills are also critical, since you may be working directly with the client that has hired your company to develop an app.

Today, recruiters want people who can communicate flawlessly because the entire business depends upon effective communication.

Money speaks
An app developer has numbers on the high end. There is a big difference in a mobile developer compared to a regular software developer, the former making a premium compared to the same amount of experience. The average salary starts from Rs 15,000-Rs 18,000 per month, depending on the expertise, experience and the
position of the individual. 

Career options
The career options in the wireless and mobile technologies include mobile phone system engineer, Android, Blackberry, Iphone, Windows mobile applications developer, mobile applications testing specialist, Ipad developer, game developer, mobile technicians, security experts and verification managers and so on.

What do I need to study?
The stream of mobile and wireless computing is specialisation and expertise oriented. This stream requires candidate to possess an engineering degree with
specialisation in mobile computing, wireless, tele-communications or any other network-related streams. In many cases, CCNACCNP could be an option.

Some of the educational qualifications required to join the stream of mobile and wireless computing are:

BE/BTech in electronics and communications engineering.
MTech in wireless sensor networks.
Diploma in electronics and communications engineering.
Certificate in mobile technology.
Certification in wireless networking.
Associate of Science in mobile technology.
Master’s degree in information technology-mobility.

Mobile app development is far beyond technical knowledge. An app
developer must be creative in to build a user-friendly application.

An actual training environment will let you explore your creative skills, which are very essential in mobile app development. Smartphones are definitely the future and all the major services are to be delivered through applications.

For those who aspire to make a career in mobile app development, the sky is the limit. Market watchers say it’s the ability to grasp mobile’s new usage rules, and not simply the ability to master new programming skills, that separates those with an affinity for mobile development from those who just don’t get it.

Developers have been trained to think that more features equate to better applications, but on mobile devices, that’s simply not true.

They need to make a full commitment to doing as much as possible in the mobile environment to experience firsthand both the constraints and the new
opportunities.