<p>pugmadkate-
so the funeral industry is dead??
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<p>sorry ;)</p>
<p>A Software Architect is a world apart from a Systems Analyst. Those are definitely not terms with “subtle differences!”</p>
<p>MAny of the jobs listed are titles that mean nothing to a high schooler trying to decide what to do with his/her life. I think they need better counseling at the HS level, to relate what they like to do or are interested in with actual jobs in the real world, and what sort of major that would call for.</p>
<p>My son had never heard of a physician assistant (#2 ranked job) until he volunteered in a hospital. The physician on duty told him that is what he’d recommend, as opposed to medical school. I did a lot of research and learned that there are direct-entry, accelerated programs available. My son is now in his third year of a 5 year program.</p>
<p>Yes, IT job is very satisfying. I cannot say that it pays good, it depends much on palce of employment even in the same region. I have been in IT for about 30 years, have worked for 9 different emloyers in the same city. However, in current economic conditions, any job is a good job, it will feed you. The only one that is secure is any job related to Medical field. I have never met unemployed MD or Pharmasist or PA or dentist. Do these speices exist?</p>
<p>My first career was as a Medical Technologist (laboratory). This was in the early 80’s and there were very few jobs available. I was willing to take any job in my field (and work some horrible shifts), but also went through times of unemployment. I had always heard that if you were in a medical profession that there were always jobs available. Recently (w/in the last few months) 2 people I know who are nurses have told me that it is not that easy finding a nursing job these days. These two people live in different parts of the country.</p>
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<p>Sadly, I have. He’s addicted to perscription drugs, which is one of the dangers in this field.</p>
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<p>Interesting and forceful declaration which provides exactly zero information. Elucidate please.</p>
<p>and if you have a fixed definition for “software architect” please bless wikipedia with your knowledge.</p>
<p>[Software</a> architect - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Software_architect]Software”>Software architect - Wikipedia)</p>
<p>Not to mention that I just Googled the phrase “software analyst/system architect” and came up with around a dozen instances of ads requesting someone to fill both roles, or CVs with people claiming to hold both positions at the same time. </p>
<p>So I still believe these terms mean basically whatever someone wants them to mean. Unless you can give me specifics and sources I’m still not changing my opinion. But if you give me these specifics, I will consider them.</p>
<p>Software Architect: I didn’t understand all of the Wikipedia article, but that is due to my lack of prior knowledge. I could ask my boys to explain, if I were really interested.</p>
<p>It seems clear, however, that it is not at all the same thing as a Systems Analyst.</p>
<p>How about this analogy? Is the SA more like the HVAC designer for a building? Using existing systems/machinery and matching them to the customer specs? The systems having first been designed by the Software Architect.</p>
<p>^^^^
You don’t need to understand the whole article. Just the first line -</p>
<p>“Software architect is a general term with many accepted definitions, which refers to a broad range of roles…”</p>
<p>This means that the definition is in “the eye of the beholder”.</p>
<p>I’m an electrical engineer, but because I also have a Masters in Information Systems, I have one of my search functions on Monster listed as “Systems Analyst.” You would not believe the wide range of job duties people put under this job title.</p>
<p>I suppose you could make a case that a “Software Architect” is a type of Systems Analyst. I still don’t think there are universally accepted definitions for these job titles.</p>
<p>However, I also have little interest in researching it. I’m also not sure exactly who your “boys” are, but if they have definitions and evidence about the correct definitions I’d be glad to read about it.</p>
<p>I have worked in a field for 30 years, never heard of “Software Architect”, just simply terminology refferring to responsibilites of this position sounds very unusual. I have worked in various industries, on several platform, doing analysis, design and coding computer programs in several languages for various business functions. My experience covers very wide range of responsibilities.</p>
<p>Software architect isn’t that unusual of a term. My take on a Software Architect - an experienced software engineer/developer who designs software functionality, sometimes complex functionality - i.e. determines which software components should exist, how they’ll interact with each other, what kinds of interfaces it should have, etc. to achieve the solution just as a building architect designs a building with all of its components that must work together to achieve the result. There are usually many ways to achieve a goal and it’s up to the architect to choose what they feel is the most workable solution that acieves the goals yet is cost effective and achievable. It’s possible the person may not even write any of the code. </p>
<p>Software architect is typically a role more experienced developers might move into - it’s not typically something one starts out doing fresh out of college.</p>
<p>I agree that titles are used loosely - software architect, software developer, software engineer, programmer, system analyst, system engineer, etc. - but they’re not interchangeable terms.</p>
<p>In the context of the article I think it boils down to a person who typically has a Computer Science degree who has a fair amount of experience in designing software solutions - not simply writing code.</p>
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<p>I don’t really have the time to do it. But I bet I could find 50 ads for “Systems Analysts” which list many, most, or even all of the above job duties. And probably five or six other job titles.</p>
<p>Eg Systems Architect, Software Systems Analyst. What are those job descriptions?</p>
<p>i’m just not buying that Systems Analyst and Software Architect have specific, universally accepted meanings.</p>
<p>“My take on a Software Architect - an experienced software engineer/developer who designs software functionality, sometimes complex functionality - i.e. determines which software components should exist, how they’ll interact with each other, what kinds of interfaces it should have, etc. to achieve the solution just as a building architect designs a building with all of its components that must work together to achieve the result.”</p>
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<li>Sounds like Programmer Analyst to me, done it, never heard of other terminology than Analyst, but it might depend on region of the country (this is my wild guess), Local language might use different terminology for the same responsibility. Middle of the country usually is not involved so much with rankings, not like East and West where terminology might be different.</li>
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<p>Re: Software Architect - I suggest reading the responses to the article; last night the first response was a reasonable description, but that order may change.</p>
<p>For those of you interested in what it means for a college student, it’s a career track from CS (not IS), with a bent towards software engineering. It requires quite a bit of deep, hands-on software development experience in different areas using different technologies/environments. Like every career track, there’s a gradual weeding out process.</p>
<p>There aren’t many who reach that level. Those who do have a history of demonstrated design success in complex areas, strong writing and presentation skills, and the leadership ability to coax large teams of engineers to work collaboratively towards a goal based only on compelling ideas (not reporting chains). These folks create the essential structure of complex systems purely through clear vision.</p>
<p>As other folks have mentioned, titles fly around freely, and you’ll often hear somebody complimented by being referred to as an “architect of X”, or an “architect of Y” - for components X and Y. But the large community of developers know who the architects are, and the plain term “architect” isn’t casually used. It’s far, far beyond a systems analyst or a programmer - a completely different level.</p>
<p>Finally, the field is at best tangentially related to IT, IS, MIS.</p>
<p>Well, with regard to civil engineering I differ with an early poster…it seems to me that so many industries, cities, towns, states, businesses, corporations…have deferred infrastructure repair during the past 3-5 years that eventually and probably sooner than we can imagine civil engineering is going to be a very necessary job skill. Think about the gas line breaks, the bridge closures and faults, the buildings that will need to be more energy efficient, the transition to Leed certification and on and on.</p>
<p>Another poster asked about “Systems Architect.” “Systems Architect” and “Systems Engineer” are technical sales jobs - software engineers with customer-facing skills, and the ability to stand in front of a mixed group, describe technical capabilities of products, fit products to customer needs, field difficult questions, do off-the-cuff, interactive designs and presentations on the whiteboard, etc.</p>
<p>These can be very highly compensated positions, especially for those rare individuals with excellent technical knowledge and a great sense of how to address the room while navigating the politics of the subtle warring contingencies. It takes a special person to think clearly when on the spot in high-tension, pressure-cooker situations.</p>
<p>Their compensation can easily double that of equivalently skilled developers. Despite people’s erroneous opinions of sales, these engineers really work their tails off, sometimes losing all control of their personal lives. They take home the big dollars, and they are well-earned.</p>
<p>I look at more than job growth and pay when considering attractive fields.
For example- dentists are #12 on this list.
but from the dentists POV.</p>
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[Stress</a>, burnout, anxiety and depression among dentists – RADA and JOHNSON-LEONG 135 (6): 788 – The Journal of the American Dental Association](<a href=“http://jada.ada.org/cgi/content/full/135/6/788]Stress”>http://jada.ada.org/cgi/content/full/135/6/788)</p>
<p>OK, I was happy to help clarify, but you’ve heard enough from me! </p>
<p>Net/net: systems architect, systems engineer, programmer, software architect, business analyst, software analyst, scientific programmer, senior engineer, etc. - these are all very different positions, but you wouldn’t necessarily know the distinctions if you’re not in the field. </p>
<p>Also, IT, MIS, engineering, sales engineering, scientific programming,and s/w development, are all completely different fields. The article was discussing a solid position in software development. IT and MIS, in particular, have almost no relationship to this area.</p>
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What the heck does this mean? Last night the first response was a reasonable description but the order may change?</p>
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This is gibberish. This is what any good project manager does. These titles are meaningless because every ad for these jobs is different. </p>
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Again, maybe where you work or to you these are sales jobs. I can find people with these titles who do zero sales, and nothing related to sales. If there is no unanimity of understanding there is no definition.</p>
<p>Here’s another wiki for you to correct. Let me know when your’re finished bringing these people up to snuff-
<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Systems_engineering[/url]”>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Systems_engineering</a></p>
<p>I scoured it and must have missed the part about this being a sales position. Please enlightren these folks.</p>