how to become a software engineer ?

What Does a Software Engineer Do?

Software engineers design and create computer systems and applications to solve real-world problems.

Software engineers, sometimes called software developers, create software for computers and applications. If you’re an analytical thinker who enjoys solving problems and making digital products easier to use, you may find a career as a software engineer rewarding.

What is software engineering?

Software engineering is the branch of computer science that deals with the design, development, testing, and maintenance of software applications. Software engineers apply engineering principles and knowledge of programming languages to build software solutions for end users.

Software engineer tasks and responsibilities

Successful engineers know how to use the right programming languages, platforms, and architectures to develop everything from computer games to network control systems. In addition to building their own systems, software engineers also test, improve, and maintain software built by other engineers.

"I get excited about anything that involves solving problems, whether it be figuring out how to optimize a certain part of an existing application or entirely coming up with new applications to solve certain needs," says Murtadha Al-Tameemi, a software engineer at  "Problems in general stimulate my brain and give me a great sense of satisfaction."

In this role, your day-to-day tasks might include:

• Designing and maintaining software systems.

• Evaluating and testing new software programs.

• Optimizing software for speed and scalability.

• Writing and testing code.

• Consulting with clients, engineers, security specialists, and other stakeholders.

• Presenting new features to stakeholders and internal customers.

Systems developer vs. application developer

Software engineers will usually fall into one of two categories, systems developers or application developers.

As a systems developer (sometimes called a backend engineer), you’ll build things like computer systems and networks that front-end (user-facing) applications will need. You can do this by: