Launch League

Tech, business and creative · Ohio

Software developer: what the job actually is

Designing, writing and fixing the programs a business or its customers run on, and spending far more of the day reading and thinking than typing.

By , founder, U.S. Air Force veteranChecked against official Ohio sources Pay: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025

The work

What this job actually is

  • Turning a vague request ("customers keep abandoning checkout") into a precise list of things a computer must do, and then making it do them.
  • Reading other people's code. Most of the job is working inside a program that already exists, written by people who have left, with reasons nobody wrote down.
  • Debugging: something works on your machine and not on the server, and the next two hours belong to finding out why.
  • Meetings, code reviews and written explanations. You are paid to communicate as much as to type.
  • Constant learning. Tools and languages change every few years, and nobody stops you from falling behind except you.

A Tuesday

What a normal day looks like

Not a good day or a bad one. The ordinary version, which is what you would actually be living.

  1. 9:00: Stand-up meeting. Fifteen minutes, everyone says what they did, what they are doing, and what is stuck.
  2. 9:20: Back into yesterday's bug. You add logging, reproduce it, and finally see the input nobody expected.
  3. 11:00: Write the fix, then write a test so it never comes back quietly.
  4. 12:30: Lunch, usually at the desk more often than you planned.
  5. 1:30: Review a teammate's code. You leave six comments; two of them matter.
  6. 3:00: Planning meeting with a product manager who wants a feature by Friday. You explain why it is really two weeks.
  7. 4:30: Answer your own review comments, merge, and watch the deploy to make sure nothing breaks.

Honestly

Who loves this, and who should not do it

You may like this if
  • You will happily spend an hour on a puzzle and feel great when it clicks.
  • You already build things on a computer for fun, even badly.
  • You can sit with not knowing the answer for a long time without panicking.
  • You like work where the result is visible: it runs or it does not.
You may hate this if
  • You need to move around. This is a desk and a screen for most of the day.
  • Being stuck makes you miserable instead of curious. You will be stuck often.
  • You do not want to keep learning after school ends. This job never lets you stop.
  • You picture coding alone. Real teams review, argue about and rewrite each other's work every day.

The route in

How you actually get there in Ohio

  1. Know there is no license

    Ohio does not license software developers. Employers look at what you can show: a degree, projects, internships and how you do in a technical interview.

  2. Start college credit in high school if you can

    College Credit Plus lets Ohio students in grades 9 to 12 take college courses for high school and college credit at the same time. For public school students at a public Ohio college it is free: no tuition, books or fees.

  3. A degree is the usual front door

    Most developers have a bachelor's degree in computer science or a related field such as engineering or math. Ohio has public universities and community colleges across the state; a two-year start at a community college is a common, cheaper way in.

  4. Get an internship and build things

    Internships are the most common bridge from school to a first job. A small portfolio of real projects you can explain line by line matters more than a long list of languages.

  5. Let an employer pay for more training

    Ohio's TechCred program reimburses Ohio employers for technology credentials earned by their current and prospective W-2 employees, so once you are hired, further certificates are often paid for by the company.

While you are still in high school

  • Look for an Information Technology career-tech program at your high school or career center. Ohio's IT career field covers designing, developing and supporting software and systems.
  • Take intro programming through College Credit Plus. It is free for public school students at a public Ohio college and the credit counts twice.
  • Join Business Professionals of America, which the state lists as a student organization for the IT career field and which runs Ohio competitions.
  • Keep a public folder of everything you build, even the small and ugly things. That folder is the start of a portfolio.

Where this comes from: BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: Software developers, how to become one · Ohio Revised Code 3365.03: College Credit Plus eligibility (grades 9 to 12) · Ohio Department of Education and Workforce: College Credit Plus (cost for public school students) · Ohio Department of Education and Workforce: Information Technology career field · Ohio Department of Development: TechCred · Business Professionals of America, Ohio Association · Ohio Department of Higher Education: Ohio's campuses · Ohio.gov: start, run and grow a business in Ohio. Rules change, so check the official page before you rely on a detail.

The money

What it pays in Ohio

Last on purpose. Pay matters, but it is a bad reason to pick a job you would dislike for thirty years.

$114,090
Median pay in Ohio, a year
$54.85
Median pay in Ohio, an hour
44,790
People doing this job in Ohio
$105,430
Median pay in the Akron area, a year

Most people in Ohio earn between $77,790 (the lowest-paid tenth, usually new starters) and $168,400 (the highest-paid tenth) a year.

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025: Ohio and Akron, OH metro area. Median means half earn more and half earn less.

Try it this week

Build one tiny useful program

  1. Pick a boring task you do every week, like splitting a group bill or tracking homework due dates.

  2. Use a free online course or editor to learn just enough Python or JavaScript to automate it.

  3. Get it working, then break it on purpose with strange input and fix it.

  4. Notice which part you enjoyed: designing it, the fight to make it work, or showing it to someone.

Questions to ask somebody who does it

  • How much of your week is writing new code versus reading and fixing old code?
  • What did your first job actually look at when they hired you?
  • How do you keep up with new tools without burning out?
  • What does a bad week look like in this job?
  • Did your degree matter, or did your projects matter more?

Can you own one?

Yes. There is no license, so you can freelance or start a small software or app studio in Ohio as soon as you have clients. Most developers work for someone else first to learn how real projects run. Registering the business itself goes through the state's normal business setup process.

Thinking about it? How to start a business in Ohio and the free Business 101 course are the place to begin.

Questions

Quick answers

How much does a software developer make in Ohio?
The median pay for a software developer in Ohio is $114,090 a year ($54.85 an hour), according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics for May 2025. Most people earn between $77,790 and $168,400.
How do you become a software developer in Ohio?
Know there is no license. Start college credit in high school if you can. A degree is the usual front door. Get an internship and build things. Let an employer pay for more training.
Can you own your own business as a software developer in Ohio?
Yes. There is no license, so you can freelance or start a small software or app studio in Ohio as soon as you have clients. Most developers work for someone else first to learn how real projects run. Registering the business itself goes through the state's normal business setup process.

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