“I’m not good at coding. And I’m a tech student. I’m doomed!”
Ever heard such complaints from your friends? Or perhaps — do you feel the same? As a tech student knowing how to code should be one of the most fundamental lesson you need to learn. As a problem solver you’re required to at least understand how to build something that will solve one problem and programming is one of the most important tool to reach that purpose. So — picking up coding skills — is great!
But Oops! not everyone wants to do it in their day-to-day. Let’s not debate over the reasons, but if you ever heard the first statement from one of your colleagues, or maybe even you think so, don’t worry! You are not (( yet )) doomed lol.
Because in fact there are plenty of jobs where its not a vital skill! So, we’re basically talking about what can you do with your IT degree outside of being a programmer ;) And — I’ve gathered some information of other alternative careers for you to check out!
- Product/Project Manager
According to Andrei Tit, even though they might overlap in terms of certain skills, such as leadership and time management, they’re in fact two sides of the same coin. Additionally, while both roles are technically geared for the delivery of products and projects, there are different processes and best practices required of both roles. For example, many project managers are accustomed to working within the PMBOK or PMI guidelines for best project management practices. Whereas product managers might rely on lean manufacturing processes or lean software development methodologies, which can be wildly different ways of working with teams. As a result, these roles often intersect in an organization.
But the question is — , do you enjoy working with lots of people, organizing things, having strong and determined wills to reach your goals as effective as possible all while having sense of leadership? Perhaps this one suits you!
For a fresh start, I recommend you to read this book for a bit of light reading *smirk in Hermione ways*. If you want to experience it practically, you can apply for internship or simply volunteer yourself to be the leader in a group project and see where destiny may lead you!
2. UI/UX Specialist
Several roles that fall under this category, each related to how users interact with a website, program, or app. Such roles can involve skills from design, psychology, human-computer interaction (HCI), and others. When websites, programs, and apps are being developed, UX/UI specialists sketch out wireframes and mockups. These are tested on users, enabling the development of guidelines for designers to complete the user interface.
To be more specific, while UI focused on providing better interface for user to interact, UX would be the overall experience of user the moment they interact with the system itself. You may want to check this out to see the differences between them :
By the end of the day, both types strives for the same purpose : a system that could provide better ways for user to interact based on not only what is good for the eye but also suit their needs, to a point where it may increase their satisfaction and earn their loyalty!
Sounds interesting to you? Try ’em out! You can start from turning your idea into a prototype, analyze and survey the needs of your targetted user, create a mock up using any available online-and-free tools out there, ask them to try and see their response! Maybe you’ll find it fun to do!
3. Information Officer
Wherever you go, information is always there! And the higher the stack, the more organization will need someone to manage them in a way where it could benefit them — by turning them into knowledge! And that’s exactly what a Chief Information Officer (CIO) do! CIOs are viewed as key contributors to formulating organizational goals as the storage, transmittal and analysis of electronic information grows in importance across industries.
As a result of their increased strategic responsibilities, CIOs in large organizations typically delegate the oversight of day-to-day IT operations to a technology deputy and rely on a team of specialists to manage specific areas of IT. The role of the CIO continues to rapidly evolve as organizations become more digital. And sssh, over the years technology has been growing fast, the role of a CIO is indeed promising.
4. Business Analyst
From the outside, it might seem like the software development cycle is simple. However, it isn’t just about developers creating what customers tell them. The customer’s requirements rarely translate to technical requirements smoothly.
This is where the business analyst comes in, bridging the gap between customer and developers. By gaining a solid understanding of what the customer wants the software or product to do, the business analyst turns those requirements into a series of tasks that the developers can address individually. So if you have strong fundamental technical knowledge, while also having good senses of business and well-spoken, being a business analyst might be your dream job!
5. Technical Writing
You want to work in tech that doesn’t work directly on coding work, but at some point you do understand how the system works, you know your audience and how to conveyed the information into systematic technical manner? You may want to check this out! Surely the developers and the consultant team would love to have you around. If you’re keen to learn more, as a beginner you can start from reading this book from Kristina Van Laan The Insider’s Guide to Technical Writing!
In the end,
Most of them still require you to understand coding and how it works though, but at least now you can try to explore based on what kind of role you wanted to focus more in the future.
By the way, the list still goes on! I’d love to write part 2 somewhere around December, and I’ll try to write it more specifically. For the time being, I recommend you to read this Man’s Search for Meaning beautifully written by Viktor E Frank, totally worth your time. So — stay tune and thank you for reading!
