So you’re considering a career in the mobile app industry. It’s no secret that apps have only gained popularity. Smartphone usage has only gone up, and it will continue to rise. Companies, organizations, and educational institutions are all resorting to apps to improve their accessibility and customer relations, and someone has to create those apps through collaboration. If you want to be the one to do that, there're a few things you should know before you consider app development your primary career.

1. What kind of degree you’ll need

You can’t just roll out of bed and call yourself an app developer. Serious enterprises are only going to hire qualified professionals to design their apps. You’ll need to be fluent in popular programming languages, and have a degree behind you. Mobile computing, computer science, and software engineering may work if you don’t want the focus of your degree to be specifically in mobile application development.

2. How much money you’ll make

Surprisingly, there’s a decent salary in store for qualified and successful app developers. As an experienced app developer, you can expect to bring home somewhere between $85,000 all the way up to $125,000 a year. It’s not a shabby paycheck, but it may take you a while to work your way up the ranks. Make sure you have as many qualifications and certificates as possible if you’re looking to coast up to the top tier. You’ll be busier, but you’ll have a better income to show for it.

3. What your responsibilities entail

It’s not only your job to develop the apps, but to test and debug them as well. Since you’re communicating directly with a client, this may mean that your apps will require a lot of revisions. You’ll also need to develop several different versions of the same app, as the majority of apps are released for both Android and iPhone. You may think that being an app developer will give you a lot of freedom, but you do have plenty of people to answer to and play nice with.

4. What your career outlook is

In the coming years, companies will only need more app developers. With technology that’s becoming increasingly more popular, more jobs in the field will start popping up on the horizon. If you’re looking to cement yourself a place, the sooner you start, the better you’ll do. Getting a head start means you’ll reach the job market before it becomes oversaturated. Don’t wait until everyone else has chosen the same career path, as that will only increase your competition.

5. Where to look for jobs

Both large and small enterprises are constantly hiring for app development. If you don’t secure yourself entirely to one parent brand and absorb the needs of their individual companies, you can always look on places like Gumtree for trial jobs. Especially in the beginning, you’ll want to apply your skills on budget jobs so you’ll have something to show in your portfolio. As you gain experience, you’ll be able to move up the ladder by investigating corporate websites for companies that are looking to create or improve apps.

Mobile app development can be stressful, but experienced and dedicated developers will get back way more than what they put in. Take your education seriously and get plenty of practice before you shoot for the stars, and don’t forget to create yourself a portfolio website to showcase your accomplishments.