Top 20 Things I Learned: Day in the Life of a Software Engineer
Software engineers and developers work on computer applications and programs as explained at RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com. These professionals identify problems by running extensive tests. They also correct any issues and build new programs. If a career in software engineering is something you are interested in pursuing, you should know what to expect. Here are 20 things we learned when it comes to a day in the life of a software engineer.
Work schedule
Depending on their work conditions, a software engineer will either report to a physical office to work remotely according to RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com. Once at the office, software engineers prepare and go through their work schedules for the day. Typically, they will check their emails and start with a set number of tasks to complete for the day.
What usually comes first?
When it comes to the work schedule, which has the tasks that one has to complete for the day, the first development task for the day, usually, would be to design a software solution based on a client’s needs. This sometimes requires collaborating with a product manager.
The mental flow
As per RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com, software engineers start their day by working on their coding projects. Ideally, software engineers set aside time every day to enter a “mental flow” state, which allows them to focus on solving problems and developing reliable solutions.
Meetings
Software engineers may also attend meetings interspersed throughout the day. These meetings may involve fellow engineers or members from other departments and are designed to ensure that everyone is on the same page as far as projects are concerned.
Coding comprises a lot of the day
As any software engineer will tell you, the day-to-day life of an engineer is made up of a lot of coding. A typical day consists of a mixture of coding, reviewing code, and talking about code. You have to love coding if you want to go into this line of work.
Flexibility
For the most part, software engineers have very flexible schedules as articulated at RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com. Part of the glory of working with computers is being able to work remotely and also to work at any hour of the day.
Sprints
When it comes to the day-to-day life of a software engineer, it is important to note that you will be working in “sprints”. The idea is that rather than working on a large project in a single run, it is broken down into two-week sprints. Everyone on the dev team would take a task suited to them.
Assessing progress
Once everyone on the team has been assigned a task that suits them, every morning there is a shorter session to assess progress as captured at RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com. These would typically involve standup meetings of 10-15 minutes where everyone says what they have achieved, what they are struggling or blocked with (if anything), and what they are going to be doing that day.
Checking for updates
At the start of the day, software engineers ensure that they check for any updates through emails or other networking applications. They look for the past records of an ongoing project and client’s mails regarding the same, as well as any issues that need to be fixed before proceeding further. It is during this time that a software engineer will check for any upcoming meetings with the team, clients, or contractors.
Breaks
The job of a software engineer requires one to sit in front of their desk for long periods at a time. This is why many take time during the day for breaks, usually after a period of about 2 hours of continuous work at the desk, for some fresh air, before returning to work.
Making the most out of the lunch break
Software engineers typically go for lunch at about 1 to 1:30 in the afternoon as covered at RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com. Most spend this time with colleagues, having food while discussing aspects of projects they are working on.
Relying on recordings and notes
Given how busy their day is, some software engineers usually try to avoid all the meetings which can go well without them in attendance. Therefore, to keep track of all of them, software engineers rely a lot on recordings and notes. Most use Zoom in combination with Gong, a tool that keeps both video and text records for each discussion so that they can quickly look through any notes later if necessary.
Asynchronous communication during lunch
Many software engineers take advantage of the period right after lunch when their brains sort of slow down for a short time, to conduct more of their asynchronous communication. As described at RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com, this is usually longer-form discussions in Threads or Paper.
Events
There are days when software engineers will attend networking or social events, which are a key part of the life of an engineer. Networking with other software engineers and building relationships is important for software engineers.
Drafting SRS documents
When it comes to designing software solutions, a software requirement specification (SRS) is usually used to draft and assess the viability of a client’s needs. An SRS document is used to develop an architectural model, which a programmer and development team will use as a development guide.
Collaborating with cross-development teams
For the successful implementation of complex projects, a software engineer has to efficiently collaborate with cross-functional teams as discussed at RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com. Typically, a software engineer will communicate code requirements for a software project to a computer programmer, and use tools like Git and Bitbucket to coordinate code workflow.
Resolving program issues
Before a launch, a product needs to be tested. If issues are uncovered during the testing process, it is an engineer’s job to resolve these issues. Integration issues, bugs, feature overloads, communication inadequacies, security issues, broken codes, and the product deviating from the client’s specifications are common issues that pop up during the testing phase.
Late hours
The day doesn’t always end at 5 for software engineers as there are times when one may be required to work late hours as revealed at RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com. This is especially true during crunch time when projects are nearing their launch date and the deadlines need to be met.
Deployment activities
The deployment stage of a product is the stage where the product is made available to end-users. Depending on the type of project being worked on, deployment activities may include product testing, product packaging, product release, and product performance monitoring.
Learning time
Finally, the day will end with a software engineer booting up Visual Studio for a bit of experimentation/learning. This normally involves watching YouTube tech talks, reading blogs, and exploring GitHub.
These are some of the things to expect during a day in the life of a software engineer, with more on this topic, and then some, to be found over at RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com.