Full stack development is one of the dynamic and lucrative fields in the tech industry, that helps a professional to manage tasks on both the frontend and the backend of websites and applications. Tapping on two major domains of development, this career is suitable for tech professionals looking to upskill across a vast domain and contribute end to end on technological projects.
Full stack developers are some of the most well-paid professionals in the technological domain and enjoy rapid career growth compared to their contemporaries. However, venturing into this field requires development of a number of technical skills and with the right career direction, one can enjoy a successful and prosperous career as a full stack developer.
In this blog, we walk you through relevant details about full stack development as a career domain, along with a career navigation to become a full stack developer.
Why Choose a Career in Full Stack Development?
The field of full stack development is quite vast, diverse and dynamic, and offers scope for exploration of multiple related fields to the professional. Some of the appealing reasons for you to consider becoming a full stack developer are enlisted below:
- Lucrative Compensation: One of the foremost reasons to venture into full stack development includes its competitive compensation rates. Professionals who are equipped in both backend and frontend development have better earning potential and can experience upto 2x growth in salary within a few years.
- Expanding Job Demand: As trends in digital transformation increase, organisations across the globe are shifting to digital and virtual spaces. This increases the need for professionally trained full stack developers capable of building advanced websites for these organisations.
- Scope for Freelancing & Remote Work: One of the advantages of this career are that ample opportunities in the freelancing and remote mode are available in this domain. Thus, professionals can explore flexible career options aligned better with their commitments if they are a full stack developer.
- Greater Scope for Career Escalation: As compared to developers equipped with backend or frontend skills, a full stack developer can experience faster career growth and promotions as their diverse skillset is highly desirable in development roles in technological fields.
- Diverse Projects & Opportunities: Since full stack developers get the opportunity to work end-to-end in diverse projects, they get appealing exposure and opportunity to contribute to diverse client needs.
Roles & Responsibilities of a Full Stack Developer
The job responsibilities of a full stack developer span across both frontend and backend development, and hence as professionals, they must be thorough with programming languages, frameworks, principles of database management etc.
Some of the primary job responsibilities that a full stack developer needs to fulfill are mentioned below:
Key Skills Needed for Full Stack Development
The skill repertoire desirable for a profile in full stack development is relatively broader than other branches of software development, since a full stack developer must be equipped with both frontend and backend development.
Herein, we have elaborated on the major skills that are desirable in a full stack developer.
Technical Skills & Knowledge to Succeed as a Full Stack Developer
In addition to principles of frontend and backend development, a full stack developer must also be proficient in database management, cloud services, debugging etc. Details about these core technical skills are mentioned below:
|
Key Skills |
Specifications |
|
Frontend Development |
Being proficient in core frontend areas like HTML, CSS, JavaScript, JavaScript frameworks etc. for UI designing, |
|
Backend Development |
Proficiency in programming languages like Node.js, Python, Java, PHP etc. align with experience in writing RESTful APIs, Graph QL APIs etc. |
|
Database Management |
Proficiency in designing and optimizing database schemas, familiarity with SQL Databases, NoSQL databases etc. |
|
Cloud Services & Deployment |
Being acquainted with cloud platforms like AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, deployment platforms like Docker, Kubernetes etc. |
|
Security Best Practices |
Being able to anticipate vulnerabilities such as XSS, CSRF attacks, SQL injections etc. as well as regyularly implementing security measures like authentication. |
|
Debugging Issues |
Being well-versed with integration testing, unit testing and further debugging by using frameworks such as Jest, Mocha, Selenium etc. |
Soft Skills to Succeed as a Full Stack Developer
Some of the primary soft skills required for full stack developers to possess are mentioned below.
|
Key Skills |
Specifications |
|
Logical Thinking |
Being able to approach problem statements in a logical and efficient manner so as to identify underlying rules guiding the problems and their potential solutions. |
|
Analytical Thinking |
Being able to break down complex problems to simpler elements and efficiently identifying root causes of the problem and its solutions. |
|
Communication Skills |
Being able to clearly explain and communicate information regarding technical domains to technical as well as non-technical stakeholders. |
|
Attention to Detail |
Being able to spot errors, patterns, minor discrepancies etc. in large datasets and sets of information so as to address them. |
|
Adaptability |
Being flexible and open to ideas, adaptable in one’s approach towards problems, thus quickly changing one’s approach as per the requirement for the problem. |
What are the Career Opportunities for Full Stack Development (Types of Options available in Full Stack Development)
Full stack developers get the added benefit of exploring multiple related career options to their own as they possess a vast repertoire of skills needed in domains like frontend development, backend development, cloud security, software architecture etc. As a result, venturing into this domain opens up multiple well-paid career avenues as well.
Some of these career options along with their approximate current compensation are tabulated below:
|
Career Option |
Average Salary (Per Annum) |
|
Full Stack Developer |
INR 7.53 LPA |
|
Frontend Developer |
INR 5.99 LPA |
|
Backend Developer |
INR 6.33 LPA |
|
DevOps Engineer |
INR 9.64 LPA |
|
Software Architect |
INR 28.30 PA |
|
Cloud Engineer |
INR 8.30 LPA |
|
Web Developer |
INR 4 LPA |
|
Technical Consultant |
INR 10.51 LPA |
|
AI/ML Developer |
INR 9.38 LPA |
|
Mobile App Developer |
INR 5.47 LPA |
Career Analysis: Scope of Full Stack Development
In addition to understanding the nature of full stack development roles, it is important to evaluate its career prospects from an industrial standpoint as well. Herein, we peer into the industry trends around employment in this domain as well as the investments needed to become a full stack developer.
Demand for Full Stack Developers: Industry Trends
Some of the key facts and figures about this career domain have been enumerated below for industrial insights into this field:
- Full stack developers have opportunities open not only in their own field but also related domains such as frontend development, backend development, cloud security, software engineering etc.
- One can expect more than a 2x growth in their compensation within 5-9 years of joining this field.
- Some of the lucrative industries where full stack developers can explore jobs include the e-commerce, healthcare, finance and technological fields.
- Some of the most highly demanded skills of full stack development include proficiency in Python, JavaScript, React, Angular, Node.JS etc.
- The industrial demand of full stack developers is rising not only in tech giant companies but also in startups and small to medium enterprises (SMEs).
Fees & Cost Involved in Becoming a Full Stack Developer
Whether it is undergraduate degrees or postgraduate certificates/ diplomas/ degrees, educational options are available in the regular, online and distance modes to take up. These courses offer students from diverse financial backgrounds to gain access to higher education in this field. Being a technical domain, courses on full stack development have a relatively higher fee range as indicated below. However, with many institutions providing easy EMI options to pay tuition fee, these courses have become more accessible than ever for students and professionals.
|
Full Stack Development Courses |
Approximate Course Fees |
|
INR 2,25,000 |
|
|
INR 87,000 |
|
|
INR 1,00,000 |
|
|
INR 2,25,000 |
|
|
B.Tech in Computer Science Engineering (CSE) |
INR 5,00,000 |
|
INR 2,00,000 |
|
|
INR 3,00,000 |
|
|
INR 3,13,000 |
|
|
INR 2,00,000 |
|
|
INR 2,20,000 |
|
|
INR 2,25,000 |
|
|
INR 2,50,000 |
|
|
INR 2,50,000 |
Career Growth Trajectory of Full Stack Developer
While one may start off in full stack development at moderate salaries, as the years of experience and skillset of the professional grows, one can expect steep salary growth as well. Full stack developers are one of the most highly paid professionals in the technological domains.
The expected career progression in full stack development with respect to compensation has been illustrated below as per latest statistics.
Career Navigator: What Course to Pursue for a Career in Full Stack Development?
Becoming a full stack developer has multiple career pathways as professional opportunities are open to both self-trained and formally trained individuals in this field.
Professionals having pursued Computer Science, IT or other related specialisation at the UG or PG level are eligible to become full stack developers. Additionally, those who have upskilled in this domain through professional or other certifications can also explore roles as a full stack developer in India.
The details of career navigation to practise as a full stack developer have been provided below:
Enlisted below are some of the eminent institutions in India in the private and public sector that offer courses in the specialisation of full stack development.
Conclusion
Being a lucrative and dynamic career domain, an increasing number of aspirants are turning to full stack development as a career rather than frontend or backend development. As the demand for well-qualified professionals grows in this domain, more opportunities are yet to unfold for full stack developers. It is thus a career field with the scope of offering appealing prospects.
