One of the fields that have been growing at a rapid pace and have largely remained unaffected by employment scenarios is that of computer science. The steady transformation of the world from an industrial economy to an informational economy has provided a boost to the computer science industry and there is a great demand for programmers, web developers, network specialists, and web designers all around the world. Due to this huge demand, there are many high paying jobs in computer science and the field is ever growing.
Due to the increased need for IT professionals in almost all industries, there are always new high paying jobs in the computer science field like the careers listed in ComputerCareers.org. Though these high paying jobs in computer science are not for beginners and require parallel experience, skills, and knowledge, anyone with a keen interest in a particular niche can get a top paying position with hard work and effort.
If you are looking to pursue a career in computer science or information technology or want to grow your tech career to the next level, this list of high paying computer science jobs is worth reviewing.
List of High Paying Jobs in Computer Science
You must know that just like any other industry, high paying computer science jobs also require extensive experience, a great combination of hard and soft skills, and eagerness to keep learning.
Here goes the list.
1- Software Architect
Software architects top the list of high paying jobs in computer science. This leadership role requires a person to perform designing, customer-facing, and technical duties so as to provide software solutions. A software architect should be excellent in software development and possess excellent practical and communication skills.
Software architects are responsible for expressing the architectural idea of software and take measures to execute it efficiently. The salaries of Software Architects in the US range from $33,525 to $756,258 that makes it a median salary of $160,459 per year.
2- Data Scientist
Data scientists are also among the top paid computer science professionals who conduct research and analyze the collected data for useful insights and translates them into information that utilized by an organization to monitor the progress or predict future growth.
Data scientists are in demand in almost all industries, and to become a data scientist you must have a strong background in programming, mathematics, and or statistics.
These high paying computer science professionals assist organizations in finding various solutions to their business problems by developing algorithms and complex systems that analyze the data and present it in simple to understand forms for the key decision makers.
Data scientists’ salaries in the United States range from $82,300 to $236,000 per year that makes an average $155,000 annual salary.
3- Data Modeler
Another highly paying computer science job is that of a data modeler. This interesting field requires a person to showcase excellent conceptual designing, abstract thinking, and modeling skills.
A data modeler is expected to build an organizational structure for the data stored by an organization. This database structure or design can be aimed at improvising data migration, reducing data redundancy or facilitating data retrieval, etc.
Data modelers in the United States are among the top three high paying jobs in computer science and the professionals earn $98,000 to $153,500 per year that makes an average $125,750 annual salary.
4- Software Developer
This is perhaps one of the most popular computer science jobs worldwide that pay really well. Nowadays, every company no matter big or small look forward to hiring one or at least outsource software development to someone as it’s more cost-effective than having an in-house person to perform the task.
Software developers are the main brains behind computer programs of all sorts. A software developer can be either into application software development or systems software development. Nevertheless, both these sects create networks that help trigger and power various programs.
Software developer salaries vary from industry to industry, however, they also depend on the complexity of the job they are doing. Typically software developers in the United States earn $82,430 to $136,320 per year that makes an average $109, 375 annual salary, however, some freelance software developers may earn way more than this.
5- UNIX System Administrator
UNIX system administrators are also among the top paying computer science professionals. An administrator of the UNIX system is a highly qualified and trained technical individual whose job is to maintain a multi-user computer system, including local area networks.
He can add new workstations, configure existing ones, install system-wide software, and also has the responsibility to keep the entire system of an organization safe and secure from various viruses and phishing attacks.
The salaries of UNIX System Administrators in the United States may range from $91,442 to $128,417 per year that makes an average $109, 929 annual salary.
6- IT Auditor
A recent addition to high paying computer science jobs is IT auditor. The IT auditors are tasked to analyze IT processes within a company and fine-tune them for better optimization.
An IT Auditor is a management consultant who audits various information & technology systems present within an organization and offers pragmatic solutions to make them more sustainable and effective.
The IT auditors in the United States earn $70,300 to $97,310 per year that makes the average annual salary of the IT auditor in the U.S $83,805.
7- Professional Hacker
This may sound unrealistic, but ethical hackers are the professionals much in demand, especially by the big companies. The level of technology is constantly evolving and improving, but at the same time, it is becoming vulnerable to various sorts of viruses and phishing attacks. This is where the role of professional or ethical hackers comes to play.
Their job is to provide proactive security of sensitive data and prevent any sort of unauthorized access. However, this job is not as easy as it seems and only deep knowledge and expertise can help to combat a system against any sort of breach.
Ethical hackers in the United States are offered salaries of $90,600to $128900 per year, and so an ethical hacker in the U.S earns about $109,750on on average.
8- Security Engineer
The majority of the organizations today are handling sensitive information and thus it becomes very important that they have desired systems to protect the data from any kind of theft or misuse. This is when they need security engineers who are also among the top paid computer science professionals.
The primary role of a security engineer is to keep sensitive data confidential and secure. These engineers also need to ensure that they have desired software and hardware that guarantee the safety of the information stored by an organization.
The average salary for a Security Engineer in the United States is $123,795.
9- DevOps Engineer
The demand for DevOps engineers is also on the rise and depending on the complexity of the jobs, these positions may also offer higher pay scales in the computer science field.
A DevOps Engineer or a Development Operations Engineer is someone who introduces various methodologies, tools, or processes to meet the needs of software development during its various stages. He unifies and automates the processes and skills of both the development and operation teams so as to achieve organizational goals. These engineers are quite instrumental in combining codes and application management.
DevOps engineers in the United States earn an average salary of $125,475 per year.
10- Mobile Application Developer
Mobile apps are amongst the greatest success stories over the past two decades. As mobile phones are getting powerful with each passing year, so are mobile apps. The crazy rush for every entity to have its own app has led to great demand for mobile application developers. A mobile application developer is basically a software engineer who creates, programs, tests and maintains the app which is specifically built for a certain purpose.
These developers are skilled and have sound knowledge of coding. They also have a diverse skill set and excellent understanding of the mobile landscape.
Mobile application developers in the U.S are offered an average salary of $89,225 per year, however, depending on the nature of mobile apps and the complexity of the projects, freelance mobile developers may earn more than this.
The Bottom Line
As businesses are moving towards the web these days, there is no dearth of demand for computer science jobs and these have become relatively easier to find. However, the knowledge and intellect that are required to fill these jobs are difficult to obtain. It’s true that there are many high paying computer science jobs but it also requires hard work and determination.
Any of the above high paying computer science jobs require a plethora of skills including business, marketing, analytical and mathematical skills. As computers and laptops have become critical to daily operations, computer science jobs provide an assured form of employment.
Even the job choices in this field have come a long way as there is a range of choices to cater to. High paying computer science jobs are available in both public and private sectors and in almost all kinds of industries. Many of the people who start their careers in computer science with entry-level jobs get promoted to leadership roles as a result of their hard work, constant learning, and skills acquisition.
