10 Best Tech Jobs For 2016
Tech companies' perks and benefits have long been the envy of a number of industries, but what about the actual work itself? It turns out that tech jobs accounted for nearly half of Glassdoor's "25 Best Jobs in America" report. You may be surprised by the tech jobs that made the list.
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When it comes to landing a cool job, it turns out the odds are higher if you aim for a tech job, according to a recently released report by jobs and recruiting site Glassdoor. Of the "25 Best Jobs in America for 2016," 10 of them were tech jobs, according to the Glassdoor report.
"Companies across all industries are hiring tech positions -- not just tech companies, which means that tech jobs are in extremely high demand," said Scott Dobroski, Glassdoor career trends analyst. "The reason why is because companies worldwide must now maintain an online and mobile presence to stay competitive, requiring them to invest in employees with deep tech skills."
[See 10 Best Tech Companies To Work For In 2016.]
The report ranked the companies based on the highest overall Glassdoor Job Score. That score is comprised of three components. One is salary, according to at least 75 salary reports submitted to Glassdoor in the past 12 months for a given job listed on the site, as well as at least 75 career opportunity ratings per job listed. Career opportunities include such things as career advancement potential for a given job to access to a mentorship program and skills-based training. A third component, job openings, is based on the number of open positions listed on Glassdoor for a given job title as of Jan. 8. The scores rate on a 5-point scale, with 5 being the highest.
"Of the 600 job titles that met our methodology criteria, these...10 tech jobs....stood out across all three factors," Dobroski said. "We wouldn't be surprised to see many of these jobs on our 2017 list next year."
The following slides list the top 10 best tech jobs along with their job score, number of openings, median base salary and careers opportunities rating.
Did you job make the list? If so, tell us in the comments section it's ranking is deserved. If not, let us know if this list make you consider a career change.
Job Score: 4.2
Number of Job Openings: 653
Median Base Salary: $130,000
Career Opportunities Rating: 3.4
Job Score: 4.3
Number of Job Openings: 863
Median Base Salary: $91,800
Career Opportunities Rating: 3.6
UX designers are also new to the 25 Best Jobs list this year. It was pushed onto the list for reasons similar to that of mobile developers, Dobroski said. "Companies across all industries are now hiring for this position as they work to build up their online presence. More and more potential customers use mobile websites or apps to gather information, so mobile developers are essential for improving the usability and accessibility of the product." While UX designers were among the top 10 best tech jobs, its ranking overall was No. 18.
Job Score: 4.4
Number of Job Openings: 3,749
Median Base Salary: $85,000
Career Opportunities Rating: 3.4
"As more companies across all industries hire QA managers to monitor the overall software testing process and make sure new products work before being released to the public, we wouldn't be surprised to see this specialized engineer position continue to rank highly on our annual Best Jobs in America list," said Dobroski. "Plus, across the three factors important to job seekers that make up the Glassdoor Job Score...(these) are good indicators this position will continue to be a hot job in the coming years." QA manager jobs ranked No. 15 on the overall Glassdoor list.
Job Score: 4.4
Number of Job Openings: 1,199
Median Base Salary: $135,000
Career Opportunities Rating: 3.4
If you're looking for one of the highest paying positions among the top 25 best jobs in America, then you should consider a software development manager post. It beat out all the others on the list when it comes to pay. "This is a managerial position, which garners a higher pay grade," Dobroski said. "Additionally, the job requires a high degree of education, deep technical skills and several years of software experience." Software development mangers scored No. 12 overall on the top 25 list.
Job Score: 4.5
Number of Job Openings: 982
Median Base Salary: $105,000
Career Opportunities Rating: 3.7
One of the new entrants to the list of best jobs this year is the role of analytics manager. In sizing up the reason, Dobroski said, "Similar to the demand for data scientists, analytic managers are crucial to companies that require someone to analyze and make conclusions (about the) data." While analytics managers ranked No. 6 on the list of best tech jobs, it was No. 11 overall on the best jobs list.
Job Score: 4.5
Number of Job Openings: 49,270
Median Base Salary: $95,000
Career Opportunities Rating: 3.3
The role of software engineer by far had the largest number of job openings among any of the 25 best jobs listed by Glassdoor. "Companies from all industries are building up their online presence, leading to a high demand-for-hire and compensation for software engineers," said Dobroski. Overall, software engineer positions were ranked No. 9 across all occupations on the Glassdoor 25 Best Jobs list.
Job Score: 4.5
Number of Job Openings: 6,607
Median Base Salary: $106,680
Career Opportunities Rating: 3.3
Last year, product manager jobs placed No. 8 overall on Glassdoor's Best Jobs in America for 2015. It held the same spot this year on the overall 25 best jobs list. "Because this job title has cracked the top 10 both years demonstrates it continues to be one of the hottest jobs on the market," Dobroski said, adding, "(It's) one job seekers should consider as it stands out across the three factors that make up the Glassdoor Job Score."
Job Score: 4.6
Number of Job Openings: 2,251
Median Base Salary: $90,000
Career Opportunities Rating: 3.8
Companies across all industries all have mobile apps -- or plans to create one -- and they are hiring plenty of mobile developers to create and support them, Dobroski said. Despite this trend, he added it is not surprising that the number of job openings for mobile developers is not higher. Mobile developer ranked in the top three for tech jobs on Glassdoor's list, but overall it was No. 5 for best jobs.
Job Score: 4.6
Number of Job Openings: 2,906
Median Base Salary: $119,500
Career Opportunities Rating: 3.5
The job title may be a mystery to some job seekers, but a solutions architect is an integral position in a company that handles business decisions related to software creation and performance, Dobroski said, adding, a solutions architect is a problem solver, and has a mix of both business and technical skills. Solutions architects often work closely with clients to hear feedback on their company's product, and then provide any solutions needed based on the feedback.
Solutions architects also ranked No. 3 among the best jobs in all categories, as well, on the overall Glassdoor list. "It's a top job because of the high number of job openings, the hefty average salary and plenty of career opportunities," said Dobroski.
Job Score: 4.7
Number of Job Openings: 1,736
Median Base Salary: $116,840
Career Opportunities Rating: 4.1
Data scientist has ruled as one of the hottest jobs for years, coming in at No. 9 on Glassdoor's 25 Best Jobs in America list last year, Dobroski said. He pointed to the high demand for these types of jobs, as well as high salaries and great career opportunities, as contributing to the top rating on Glassdoor's list.
Not only did data scientists capture the No. 1 slot among tech jobs, but it also held the same rank for all jobs. "It isn't a big surprise to see data scientist at No. 1 this year because it's one of the hottest and fastest growing jobs we're seeing right now," said Andrew Chamberlain, Glassdoor chief economist. "Since all companies have an online presence these days, they all need people who know how to manage and store data that helps them make better business decisions, compared to years ago when businesses didn't have data management at their fingertips to review and analyze to help them drive business forward. I expect this to continue to be a hot job for several years to come, too."
Job Score: 4.7
Number of Job Openings: 1,736
Median Base Salary: $116,840
Career Opportunities Rating: 4.1
Data scientist has ruled as one of the hottest jobs for years, coming in at No. 9 on Glassdoor's 25 Best Jobs in America list last year, Dobroski said. He pointed to the high demand for these types of jobs, as well as high salaries and great career opportunities, as contributing to the top rating on Glassdoor's list.
Not only did data scientists capture the No. 1 slot among tech jobs, but it also held the same rank for all jobs. "It isn't a big surprise to see data scientist at No. 1 this year because it's one of the hottest and fastest growing jobs we're seeing right now," said Andrew Chamberlain, Glassdoor chief economist. "Since all companies have an online presence these days, they all need people who know how to manage and store data that helps them make better business decisions, compared to years ago when businesses didn't have data management at their fingertips to review and analyze to help them drive business forward. I expect this to continue to be a hot job for several years to come, too."
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