Job Cluster: Software Development

This 20-page packet provides five categories of employment and education standards related to technical software development careers created as a part of the IT Skills Standards 2020 and Beyond (ITSS 2020) project. They were developed in collaboration of approximately 100 IT employer subject matter experts (SMEs) with the goal of assisting information technology programs in aligning curriculum with industry needs. The standards were developed over three meetings and subsequent follow up surveys, and were updated in 2023.

The first set of standards focuses on knowledge, skills and abilities (KSA) that IT graduates should posses along with tasks they should be able to complete for a career in technical software development. Each task and KSA has a rating indicating the importance of its inclusion in an IT curriculum. Next, the packet covers employability skills, followed by key performance indicators reflecting how well a task has been completed. Finally, it includes learning outcomes adapted from the SME meetings by educators in attendance, and a table depicting the likeliness of each task and KSA being included in four-year and two-year degrees.