Job Title
What do we call people who create software? Here’s a list off the top of my head of common titles, either official or self-applied within the industry, in no particular order:
- computer programmer
- software engineer
- software designer
- software architect
- (software/application/solutions/language or framework name) developer
- coder
- hacker
- technologist
- geek/ninja/pirate
One could argue that there are distinctions between some of these titles based on experience, education, role, or skills in the good old-fashioned art of bullshitting. I’m sure there is some nuance, the sore thumb being “architect” which is typically reserved for the top-tier, who often find themselves acting more as a project manager than a hands-on creator of software.
Some of these titles can be modified with adjectives to imply experience, or lack thereof; for example: “junior”, “lead”, “senior”, “principal”, “distinguished”, or “chief”. Sometimes titles are used to narrow or expand the role, like “Junior UI Developer” or “Senior Systems Architect”.
So what do I call myself? My company is currently filling a spot for a Senior Application Developer, which is basically the role I’m in, but my official title is “Senior Software Engineer”. When people ask, I just tell them I’m a software engineer (without the “senior” modifier so I don’t come off as a pompous dork) — and if they don’t know what that means, I tell them I’m a computer programmer.
Ultimately, I don’t care what my title is, as long as I’m fairly compensated, have plenty of interesting problems to solve, and have the opportunity to learn and teach (often at the same time). I think most people, regardless of title or industry, feel the same.
I totally agree with you.
How much does it matter the title?
At the end of the day, all it matters is how good can you solve the problem and write the code.
There are so many people who get very concerned about your title and your qualifications. They ask about degrees, diplomas, and other bullshit…
But in the end all it should matter is: “Can you get the job done or not?”
We all should be happy to teach, to share our knowledge and face hard problems daily.
anyway, what makes me more happy is when i look back at the problems i did get solved, the harder the problem was the more I feel good.
cheers.
Frederico Araujo
Not caring about titles and how you appear to other people is one of the reasons engineers and other geeks (in the best sense of the word) make, in general, much less money than marketing/business types.
Wake up and smell the money dudes. Image matters.