How To Become A Contract Programmer Analyst: What It Is and Career Path

What is a contract programmer analyst and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted expert

James Sellmann Ph.D.

A programmer analyst designs, develops, and implements computer programs. They help organizations create optimized systems for their work. When an organization hires one of these professionals, the analyst will gather information about their current systems and unmet needs. This data is then used to develop new and better systems.

The 'contract' in the job description means that these professionals may work with various organizations in a limited time capacity. Sometimes, the agreement stipulates that the analyst sticks around to ensure the functionality of the systems. In other agreements, the contract ends after the delivery of the new system.

Most contract programmer analysts have at least a bachelor's degree in computer science or related fields. They also possess relevant work experience in programming. Some organizations prioritize experience over certifications when hiring programmer analysts.

What general advice would you give to a contract programmer analyst?

James Sellmann Ph.D.

Dean, Professor of Philosophy and Micronesian Studies, University of Guam

General advice is to keep in mind that you must leverage your skills, especially your soft skills of being able to work with people, to communicate effectively and to be able to solve problems. Be real. Don't try to pretend to be someone else to impress others. Be your authentic self. And show up on time.

ScoreContract Programmer AnalystUS Average

Salary

6.6

Avg. Salary $83,957

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

5.3

Growth rate 9%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

5.6

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.19%

Asian 12.57%

Black or African American 10.41%

Hispanic or Latino 11.15%

Unknown 5.02%

White 60.66%

Gender

female 23.10%

male 76.90%

Age - 42

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 42

Stress level

5.3

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.3

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.8

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a contract programmer analyst

Explore contract programmer analyst education requirements

Most common contract programmer analyst degrees

Bachelor's

68.9 %

Associate

18.4 %

Master's

9.3 %

Start to develop specific contract programmer analyst skills

Skills	Percentages
SQL Server	11.51%
Access Database	8.93%
Cobol II	6.82%
DB2	6.56%
CICS	4.65%

Complete relevant contract programmer analyst training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New contract programmer analysts learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a contract programmer analyst based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real contract programmer analyst resumes.

Research contract programmer analyst duties and responsibilities

Manage a team of 5 PowerBuilder and Java developers responsible for the creation of the Java base application.
Manage code repository structure and environment for various application using TFS.
Develop IBM COBOL programs to extract and convert investor account data to XML format and load into mainframe DB2 tables.
Develop and maintaining various websites that use HTML, JavaScript, PHP and MySQL with back ends to streamline site admin.

Prepare your contract programmer analyst resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your contract programmer analyst resume.

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