If you have dream to pursuing a career as a mobile app developer and finding the way to a professional iOS developer, here’s your guide for skills you need, salaries you desire, and the best programming languages to learn.
Here we have compiled the most important details and resources to help understand how to make career in mobile app development industry.
What does an iOS developer do?
An iOS app developer builds and tests applications for mobile devices for Apple’s operating system iOS that are consistent with the goals and standards of their company. They need to have a deep knowledge of iOS and how it works with various Apple devices like the iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, and Apple TV, and be able to adapt their applications to their firm’s or client’s requirements.
Let’s discuss what you need to do to become an iOS developer?
Buy a Mac or iPhone:
As an iOS developer, Mac should be your main working tool. I am not saying to spend so much money to spend before you earn, just buy a Mac, you may consider Mac Mini.
Install Xcode:
The second step after you bought a mac, now you need to install the most important software for iPhone app developer-Xcode.
Xcode is the integrated development environment (IDE) for iPhone app development. It’s free and it can be downloaded from the Mac App Store. In Xcode is used to writing and editing the code, debugging, “drawing” your app in storyboards, unit test your app and many several things. Xcode is also used to upload ios application to App Store. As soon as, you get familiar with it will be best for you as an iOS developer.
Learn Basics Of Programming Language:
If you already have programming background, pick the Objective-C (harder to learn) or Swift (easier to learn), they are mostly standard object oriented programming languages. But if you never had programming background don’t worry, there’s another way to go.
Two great resources for true beginners:
- Ry’s Objective-C tutorial: This is the basic programming language for newbie app developers. You don’t have to truly master Objective-C, may be it is the old past language but it’s good to know the basics and understand the code.
- Swift language guide by Apple: Swift language reference you want to use and learn from. Official Apple documentation, great as always. You need to fully immerse yourself into all this variables, pointers, classes, data types and loops. Very necessary context for a further learning.
Create a few apps from tutorials.
Try this step when you are finally starting to do something useful. Get reference from these sites:
- AppCoda: The best starting step for newbie app developers. You will get many tutorials, and step by step description.
- Ray Wenderlich: Another useful site with a giant database of iOS development tutorials. Learn step by step.
Don’t stop here! Create a calculator app, after that create a weather app and then a currency converter app, Music app etc. with the help of the tutorials.
Build your own custom app
Now, you are going to next level.
At this step, start to build your own custom app. You don’t have to build second Facebook. Learn things to go ahead during the custom app development. So stay calm and analyze the areas of iOS development, you are going well. During the iPhone app development you may face some new criteria such as-
Maybe you need to build an application that uses networking a lot?
Maybe you have so much learned UIKit and that makes you create complex user interfaces?
Just Focus on clean and working code.
Learn about software development
Start learning to software development and for this you don’t need to go anywhere. Yes you can lear4n it at your own. Make Google your friend and try to be friendly with it. There are so many experts online who provide amazing session. Try to learn from them.
Finish your app development
Finish you app development after facing so many techniques during the process. That app will be going to play key role in your resume. Here’s a list of suggestions of what employers will be looking for in your app:
- Working experience on app development
- Clean code structure
- Code organizing- how did you manage that code such as small classes, selected names for variables, file grouping inside the Xcode etc.
- Usage of CocoaPods
- Usage of storyboards
- Some simple unit tests
- usage of external libraries
Publish application to App Store
This step can be optional, because to publish your app, you need an iOS developer account, which costs $99 yearly and there is a big chance that your app won’t break even that cost. It’s up to you that you want to or not to have an app in the App Store, but a lot companies evaluate this as a big plus in your resume.
Upload app to GitHub.
GitHub is a social platform which is used for sharing code.
You can upload your code here, you can watch other people’s code, you can also contribute to open source projects. It’s widely used and you can benefit from GitHub even if you are a solo-only developer — by better organizing your code and having the best possible backup.
10. Apply for the Company!
Now you are prepared to get your first job as an iOS developer! Intern or junior probably, but it’s not important — the important thing is now you have the skills to get first job, and when you achieve this, the rest will take care of itself.
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