IT Virtuosos - in demand and well paid

Salary factor one - Educational level

The graduation from school is often the first milestone and initial point of a professional career. At this point, young people are faced with an important decision - what should I do now, what do I want to do? The possibilities are manifold, a fact which makes the decision even more difficult. Apprenticeship or university? Which field of study? What are the prospects for the future and what salary can I expect after training or studies?

According to the StepStone Salary Report 2018, the average salary in the IT professions is around 64,837 euros (gross annual salary). However, the gap between academics and non-academics is quite wide. A course of study is, therefore, a decisive factor for earnings, especially when it comes to starting a career. A Master of Science degree has a positive effect on salary, especially at the beginning of an IT career. Later, if you already have several years of professional experience, practical skills will come to the fore. Then it is also possible that Bachelor graduates or trained IT specialists will catch up with former Master graduates in terms of salary in the course of their professional career. For financial reasons, the decision between Bachelor's and Master's degrees cannot, of course, be made. Rather, the focus is on the specialization you aim to achieve in the future. The more complex this should be, the more useful it is to deepen one's own knowledge with the help of a Master's degree. For some areas and career opportunities, however, a higher degree and in some cases even a doctorate is required.

Salary factor two - Responsibilities

The IT sector is very diverse and so are the tasks and areas in which you can develop. But the choice of the industry also has different effects on the amount of the sum in payroll. As digitalization progresses, IT specialists are needed almost everywhere and are desperately sought after. The aerospace and pharmaceutical industries are attracting specialists with, particularly promising salaries. The highest annual average salaries are paid to IT security experts, closely followed by IT managers and SAP consultants. SAP development and back-end software development are also highly remunerated activities. This shows the importance of SAP in the economy. Since its foundation, the company has advanced to become the largest European software producer with annual sales of around 23.5 billion euros. IT specialists in research activities can also record a high income. This often requires formal qualifications such as a master's degree or doctorate, which can rarely be replaced even with professional experience.

Salary factor three - Employer

When you enter into concrete negotiations about your future salary, you also need to consider what you can expect from your potential employer. As in other industries, the principle is - the bigger the company, the higher the salary. It is only logical that a small start-up (up to 250 employees) has less capital available for its employees than a large concern (from 1,000 employees). In Germany, this range can sometimes reach several thousand euros.

In addition, some employers offer extras such as bonuses, royalties, a company car, Christmas bonus or a company pension plan. Among the top employers in IT are the well-known big names such as Google, Microsoft, Apple, SAP, and the BMW Group. This study was based not only on the salary but also on the employer's reputation.

Salary factor four - Region

Another decisive factor influencing both the starting salary and later earnings is the region in which the job is located. In relation to Germany, there is still a discrepancy in the IT sector between the old federal states in the west and the new federal states in the east. However, the industry is optimistic about future developments, as the German economy and the situation on the labor market can be seen as positive. This is also reflected in the low unemployment rate of 4.9 percent in the first half of 2019. According to StepStone, the top salaries are paid in Hesse nationwide. However, this is not too surprising, as the financial Mecca is located in the state capital Frankfurt, which is also home to many large companies such as Lufthansa AG and Commerzbank AG.

The IT sector offers employees good career prospects, as IT experts are needed almost everywhere. This will not change in the future, because the megatrends of connectivity and globalization will not lose their impact on society in the coming years. As a result, the wage level of IT experts is and will remain high, as will their demand in the labor market. Salaries are therefore significantly higher than in other professions.

If you are interested in advancing with a strong partner by your side and developing your career further, then take a look at our job exchange. As a high-tech specialist, ARTS offers exciting jobs in the IT sector throughout Germany. Apply directly for one of the vacancies or take the initiative and become part of our unique ARTS team.

Sources: golem.de | get-in-it.de | absolventa.de | berufsstart.de | heise.de