According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the job outlook for full stack developers and engineers remains strong. From 2022 to 2032, the occupation of a full stack developer is expected to grow 25% — much higher than the average for other professions. On average, approximately 153K+ openings for software developers, quality assurance analysts, and other similar software development roles are projected each year over the decade.
With so much growth projected for full stack engineers, businesses need to understand the important role they play in a company’s DNA, what to look for in a candidate, as well as the difference between full stack developers vs. back-end developers and front-end developers.
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Full stack engineers build, test, and develop various software applications and scalable web services, and typically provide leadership to coding teams or junior developers.
A full stack engineer has an ambidextrous skill set.
The term “full stack” is used to describe a high-level software engineer or developer with the skills and knowledge to work on both the front-end and back-end of software or web development. This means they work on what an end-user sees and the client-side of how they interact with a program (the front end), as well as all the technical programming that makes this possible (the back end).
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Full Stack Engineers |
Back-End Engineers |
Front-End Engineers |
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Are involved in all stages and areas of development, including UX design, code review, performance evaluation, troubleshooting, and deployment. |
Manages everything that users cannot see (often referred to the server side). Focused specifically on the functionality of a program. |
Manages everything a user can see (often referred to as the client side). Focused specifically on the user experience, including elements of design, navigation, and user interface. |
Keep in mind that full stack engineering is a specific type or subset of the software engineering profession. This means that all full stack engineers are software engineers — however, not all software engineers are full-stack engineers.
While some duties and responsibilities may vary depending on the individual business and its unique needs or product, a full stack engineer’s typical duties are as follows:
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Similarly, job requirements and qualifications for this role will differ slightly from one another according to your organization. Typically, however, full stack engineers should possess or demonstrate:
Depending on your business’s needs, you may look for specific certifications in a full stack engineer candidate. Here’s a list of helpful certifications and what they mean.
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In the face of skills gaps and labor shortages, combined with the unique set of technical skills these engineers have, it can be challenging to find and hire full stack engineers.
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