Software Development

Recognized Skill Standards
December 10, 2021

Background

The Software Development skill standards were submitted for recognition as one of several information technology occupations developed and endorsed by the IT Skill Standards 2020 and Beyond Business and Industry Leadership Team of the National Convergence Technology Center. The National Convergence Technology Center is an Advanced Technological Education National Center of Excellence funded by the National Science Foundation, located at Collin College in Frisco, Texas.  

Development

The skill standards development was facilitated by the National Convergence Technology Center under a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF). The Software Development skill standards meet the definition and recognition criteria for Texas skill standards. The NSF grant required a rigorous development and validation process that adhered to standard job analysis methodology, including convening industry subject matter experts to identify and validate the work-oriented information. 

The skill standards were developed with a focus 12 to 36 months in the future for an entry-level employee working in the occupation. Software Development standards are composed of the following four job functions: 1) Analysis and Design, 2) Programming, 3) Testing, and 4) Implementation.

Skill Standards Equivalencies

The national IT 2020 skill standards have a somewhat different format and nomenclature than skill standards recognized in Texas. But the content and the elements that compose them are the same. Texas skill standards describe both the work (critical work functions, key activities, and performance criteria) and the worker qualifications (academic and employability skills and knowledge, and occupational skills, knowledge, and conditions, i.e., related tools, resources and equipment) for the occupation. 

The table below shows a side-by-side comparison of the equivalent elements.

 

Texas Skill Standards Elements

IT Skill Standards Elements

Work-Oriented Elements

Critical work function

Functional headings in task listing

Key activity

Task

Performance criteria

Key performance indicators

Worker-Oriented Elements

Occupational skills, knowledge, and conditions

Knowledge, skills, and abilities

Academic and employability knowledge and skills

Employability skills

Statements of assessment

No equivalent element


The IT skill standards 2020 also provide a list of student learning outcomes for use in creating curriculum. Education subject matter experts converted the skill standards’ industry-defined knowledge, skills, and abilities into the student learning outcomes. The learning outcomes can help education and training providers define what students should know and be able to demonstrate. Each of the outcomes can be observed, measured, and demonstrated.

Importance to Texas

The occupational area of software development and engineering includes the research, design, secure creation, delivery, and quality assurance/testing of computer software and applications including mobile. Additionally, web development can range from developing a simple single static page of plain text to complex web-based internet applications (web apps), and social network services. 

Nationally, the US Department of Labor (DOL) projects employment in computer and information technology occupations to grow 13 percent from 2020 to 2030, faster than the average for all occupations. These occupations are projected to add about 667,600 new jobs. Demand for these workers will stem from greater emphasis on cloud computing, the collection and storage of big data, and information security. The median annual wage for computer and information technology occupations was $91,250 in May 2020, which was higher than the median annual wage for all occupations of $41,950. (Source: DOL Occupational Outlook Handbook) 

In Texas, according to Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) data, computer occupations are projected to grow 19 percent from 2018 to 2028, and add about 67,200 new jobs, with annual openings of 34,872. As an evolving occupation, the software development cluster is not encompassed within one occupational title in TWC labor market data. However, related occupations, including software developers-applications; software developers-systems software; and web developers are experiencing higher than average projected growth of 22.8 percent and 3,782 annual job openings to the year 2028, according to TWC. In addition, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports the average hourly wage of the related occupations of software developers and software quality assurance analysts and testers, and web developers and digital interface designers, as $52.68 and $36.77, respectively. 

Recognition

On December 10, 2021, the Software Development skill standards were recognized by the Texas Workforce Investment Council in accordance with the Guidelines for the Development, Recognition and Usage of Skill Standards.