I want to work for a tech business
More Than Just Developers and Designers
Did you know that the digital technology industry has many exciting jobs beyond just designers and developers? You can specialize in different areas and still find awesome job opportunities! As technology keeps expanding, businesses need people who can do important roles like digital marketing, creating interesting content, and managing projects.
There are also other cool jobs that directly deal with technology, like helping people with technical issues (IT support specialists), protecting computer systems from hackers (cybersecurity analysts), and analyzing data to find valuable insights (data analysts). The tech industry has a place for everyone, so get ready to explore the amazing possibilities!
Different jobs options in Digital TEch
Some of the other exciting roles in the technology industry:
Marketers: help tell people about the technology products and services. They make sure people know about them and want to use them.
Content creators: make interesting and helpful information about technology. They help people understand how to use the products and why they’re useful.
Customer Relations: Help customers that may have questions about technology and guide them to making an informed purchase.
Data analysts: collect and study information to know what customers want. This helps businesses make better choices and create better products.
Sales representatives: talk to customers and persuade them to buy the technology products. They build good relationships and make sure people are happy with what they buy.
IT support specialists: fix problems with technology. They solve issues quickly so that technology works well and people don’t get frustrated.
Cybersecurity analysts: protect technology from hackers. They make sure no one can steal information or cause problems.
Quality assurance testers: check that technology works the right way. They find and fix any mistakes or issues, so it works well for people.
Business analysts: find ways to make technology better for a company. They make processes faster and suggest new technology ideas.
IT consultants: give expert advice to businesses about technology. They help make smart decisions about what technology to use and how to make it even better.
Great Pay
Depending on skillset and job title, the average person in the digital tech industry makes $65,000 a year.
If you have passion for technology, getting into the industry can be easy! The best things to do first is completing a general education, such as highschool. From there, there is a ton of options to explore:
Indigenous Programs
There are programs that can teach the basics of being a developer rooted with cultural teachings. ComIT and INDIGital both are for Indigenous youth and people who are looking increase their knowledge with digital technologies through the likes of development and design. These programs are often 1-month long and can lead to taking advance courses after completion. Here you would become familiar with coding languages and learn the basics.
Boot Camps
Bootcamps are immersive training programs designed to teach participants the skills of becoming a developer and immediately entering the workforce. These boot camps typically focus on teaching coding and programming languages, web development, data science, cybersecurity, or other specialized areas within the development field. While these programs do start with the basics, they do ramp up and eventually get into some advance leanings.
Most successful students will have a portfolio made in boot camps that can be used to help show their work to future employees. They usually take 3 months to complete and participants will receive certification.
The First Nation Technology Council covers the cost of boot camps for Indigenous folks and hosts them through the institutions of LightHouse and BrainStation in BC.
College and Universities
You can receive certificates, diplomas, and degrees to become a developer through many of our BC colleges and universities. A bachelor of computer science is the most common approach but takes the longest out of all the possible studies. Receiving a Bachelor in Computer science can take upwards of 5 years, but those who graduate will have an amazing foundation of being a developer. Those with a higher education also usually start with a higher wage than just a certificate or diploma.
- While a bachelors degree in any field is great designation to receive, it can take upwards of 5 years to complete. However, folks can begin working within the technology industry with a diploma or certificate.
Learn through Youtube
YouTube is not only a place for watching funny videos, but it’s also a treasure trove of knowledge and learning. Whether you want to learn how to play an instrument, draw amazing artwork, code your own video game, or even perform cool science experiments, there are countless YouTube channels that can teach you step-by-step. You’ll find enthusiastic and talented creators who break down complex topics into easy-to-understand videos. So, if you’re curious and ready to learn, grab your device, head to YouTube, and type in “how to” video and begin learning.
The video to the right is a great chat from a top tech recruiter and how you can start working for the tech industry if you have little to know experience.
As an Indigenous person, there are a handful of different resource to use to help cover cost of tuition or training. Check these out!