Thinking about a career in IT? Here are 5 Hot Prospects.

1. Software Developer

Median Salary: $90,060

Software developers create the games, applications, and productivity software that you use every day. From Flappy Bird to QuickBooks, software developers code, test, and update software. Software developers come up with creative software concepts and solutions to problems. The best software developers also have a technical aptitude. They may work for software publishers, or they may be entrepreneurs/ small business owners who help clients accomplish their goals. It’s a very collaborative position, so they must be excellent communicators. Projects can be either short term or long term. From writing new code to fixing bugs, software developers find solutions to some of your biggest problems.

Employment of software developers is expected to grow 22% by 2020.

2. Computer Programmer

Median Salary: $74,280

Computers don’t know anything! That may seem like a contradiction to you, but computers don’t know how to do anything until computer programmers program computers to do what you to tell them to do. They write the code that makes the software work. Software developers create design specifications for a particular program, then computer programmers refine and implement the ideas. They’ll also write, debug, maintain, and test software. It’s important for computer programmers to understand both backend and frontend programming, and to be able to tackle a wide variety of tasks. For instance, a computer programmer may need to implement user experience design when working on frontend programming projects. Plus, the latest, hottest programming languages are ever changing, so they need to keep up with their own education and learn new skills.

Computer programmer positions are expected to grow by 10% by 2020.

3. Web Developer

Median Salary: $62, 500

In a nutshell, web developers create websites. They think through every aspect of the user experience while still implementing all of the site features their client or employer needs. A good web developer takes a client’s vision and can not only turn it into a highly functional site, but they can make suggestions and changes to improve the site.

Most businesses need a web presence to succeed in the online marketplace, so web developers are in high demand. Web developers must understand ecommerce marketing to target markets, they need to have a good understanding of databases, and they also need to have a good grasp of user experience design.

The web development field is expected to have 20.1% employment growth by 2020.

4. Software Engineer

Median Salary: $90, 374

Remember those math classes you took in high school and college? You may have thought you’d never use what you learned. Software engineers use math, data, and analytical skills in their jobs daily. They play double job duty — they need to have all of the skills of computer programmers, but they also need to meet specifications and implement specific standards and practices. Often times their work involves creating complex algorithms from scratch. Software engineers must have in-depth knowledge of hardware, software, and operating systems. They’re fast workers who need to be able to stick to tight project deadlines and they need to be amazing communicators to get all of the information they need when they need it.

Software engineering jobs will increase by 22% by 2020.

5. Information Security Analyst

Median Salary: $86,170

Have you ever had a credit card reissued due to a security breach? It’s happening more and more often, and information security analysts are on the front lines of hacker prevention. They prevent cyber attacks and cyber theft by analyzing web-based security features, then finding and sewing up holes that can lead to internet crimes. They protect everything from Fortune 500 companies to Government Agencies, including the military. Information security analysts need to be able to solve complex problems. They also need to have super strong analytical skills to be the ultimate cyber sleuths, and they need to become familiar with and stay updated on security standards and security laws.

There’s expected to be a 36.5% growth in Information Security Analyst positions by 2020, the highest of any tech position.