This year’s Stack Overflow Developer Survey 2019 analysed responses from 90 000 developers (down from 101,592 developers in 2018). Developers filled in a 20-minute survey to share their views and experiences about their career and learning paths. Interestingly, approximately 75% of professional developers who took the survey were younger than 35. This piece will explore the top takeaways, as well as some interesting stats that arose from the survey, such as developers’ best and worst technologies.
Top takeaways
The Stack Overflow Developer Survey 2019 noted the following top takeaways:
- Python, the fastest-growing major programming language, edged out Java this year. Behind Rust, it’s the 2nd most loved language.
- By the time they were 16, more than half of the respondents had already written their first line of code.
- When it comes to successful developers, DevOps specialists emerged as the highest paid, most experienced and most satisfied with their jobs.
- Where will you find the most optimistic developers? Chinese developers top the list believing that people born today will enjoy a better life than their parents. More pessimistic developers come from Western European countries like France and Germany.
- Men are more likely to complain about being tasked with non-development work, while toxic work environments are potential productivity blockers for gender minority respondents.
Education
Only 46% of respondents have a Bachelor’s degree – it is fairly common to find accomplished programmers who haven’t completed a formal degree. Of the developers who studied at a university level, approximately 40%, majored in something other than computer science, computer engineering, or software engineering – e.g. health science, humanities or even fine art.
In addition, developers tend to be lifelong learners. Almost 90% of all developers say “they have taught themselves a new language, framework, or tool outside of their formal education”. Among professional developers, about 15% of them participated in a full-time developer training program or bootcamp.
Most loved technologies
According to the Stack Overflow Developer Survey 2019, JavaScript is again the most commonly used programming language (for the seventh year in a row), while Python has once more risen in the ranks. Python edged out Java this year – similarly, it surpassed C# last year and PHP the year before that.
The top three programming languages, form part of HyperionDev’s Full Stack Web Developer course. And Python and Java are a core section of the Software Engineering bootcamp’s curriculum.
Here are the six most popular programming, scripting and markup languages:
As far as web developer frameworks go, here are the top three. The HyperionDev Web Development bootcamp covers React, as well as other frameworks, in its online and on-site programs.
For the third year in a row, Python is the most wanted language. Basically, developers who don’t yet use Python want to learn it.
Rust, for the fourth year in a row, came out tops as the most loved programming language, followed closely by Python. More developers, therefore, want to continue working with these languages rather than other languages.
Salaries
It’s well-known that programming work is both in high demand and able to command a lucrative salary. Here are the top ten salaries for developers, globally. You can see that data scientist is in the top five.
Developer Satisfaction
Almost 75% of developers report that their work brings them some satisfaction. Similar to previous years, “developers tend to be more satisfied with their career than with their current job”.
In closing, we’ve covered the top findings of the Stack Overflow Developer Survey 2019. Perhaps of greatest relevance to developers and those wanting to enter this field is that learning never stops. Developers are lifelong learners. They are also, by and large, satisfied in their chosen field.
If you’re keen to change careers or upskill, consider enrolling on a HyperionDev online bootcamp in Full Stack Web Development, Data Science or Software Engineering. You can also trial one of these courses for free. If online learning is not your thing, you could enrol in an immersive, face-to-face Web Developer or Software Engineering course in Cape Town or Johannesburg. Python is included in the Software Engineering and the Data Science bootcamp.
