A mainframe developer is essentially a software developer but one who works within the mainframe system. As such, they have similar responsibilities as a software developer.
Mainframe experts are a diminishing group of developers. This has created an increasing demand for mainframe experts on a global scale. With the right skill set, they could find work in a wide range of industries anywhere in the world.
To start, they need to have a strong knowledge of mainframe languages and tools. Additionally, knowledge of project management and software development cycle can also be beneficial. Depending on the sector, industry-specific skills and knowledge may be required, too.
Most mainframe programmers have a bachelor's degree; however, some employers hire workers who have an associate's degree. While a degree in computer science is important, in the programming field, programming skill is what counts.
Mainframe Developer Overview
Working as a Mainframe Developer
There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a mainframe developer. For example, did you know that they make an average of $39.11 an hour? That's $81,355 a year!
Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow -7% and produce -17,900 job opportunities across the U.S.
What Does a Mainframe Developer Do
There are certain skills that many mainframe developers have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed troubleshooting skills, detail oriented and analytical skills.
When it comes to the most important skills required to be a mainframe developer, we found that a lot of resumes listed 11.2% of mainframe developers included db2, while 9.6% of resumes included jcl, and 7.1% of resumes included cics. Hard skills like these are helpful to have when it comes to performing essential job responsibilities.
When it comes to searching for a job, many search for a key term or phrase. Instead, it might be more helpful to search by industry, as you might be missing jobs that you never thought about in industries that you didn't even think offered positions related to the mainframe developer job title. But what industry to start with? Most mainframe developers actually find jobs in the finance and technology industries.
How To Become a Mainframe Developer
If you're interested in becoming a mainframe developer, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 62.2% of mainframe developers have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 26.9% of mainframe developers have master's degrees. Even though most mainframe developers have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.
Choosing the right major is always an important step when researching how to become a mainframe developer. When we researched the most common majors for a mainframe developer, we found that they most commonly earn bachelor's degree degrees or master's degree degrees. Other degrees that we often see on mainframe developer resumes include associate degree degrees or diploma degrees.
You may find that experience in other jobs will help you become a mainframe developer. In fact, many mainframe developer jobs require experience in a role such as programmer analyst. Meanwhile, many mainframe developers also have previous career experience in roles such as senior programmer analyst or senior software engineer.
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Mainframe Developer Career Paths
In addition to switching up your job search, it might prove helpful to look at a career path for your specific job. Now, what's a career path you ask? Well, it's practically a map that shows how you might advance from one job title to another. Our career paths are especially detailed with salary changes. So, for example, if you started out with the role of senior software engineer you might progress to a role such as team leader eventually. Later on in your career, you could end up with the title contract project manager.
What is the right job for my career path?
Tell us your goals and we'll match you with the rights job to get there.
Average Salary for a Mainframe Developer
Best Paying Cities
Recently Added Salaries
Job TitleCompany  | Company | Start Date | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
Randstad Senior Mainframe Developer Senior Mainframe Developer | Randstad Randstad | 01/30/2021 01/30/2021 | $93,91501/30/2021 $93,915 |
Us Bank Mainframe Developer Training Program Mainframe Developer Training Program | Us Bank Us Bank | 12/22/2020 12/22/2020 | $54,23012/22/2020 $54,230 |
U.S. Bank Mainframe Developer Training Program Mainframe Developer Training Program | U.S. Bank U.S. Bank | 12/21/2020 12/21/2020 | $54,23012/21/2020 $54,230 |
Robert Half Mainframe JCL Developer Mainframe JCL Developer | Robert Half Robert Half | 09/18/2020 09/18/2020 | $93,91509/18/2020 $93,915 |
Randstad Mainframe Developer Mainframe Developer | Randstad Randstad | 08/21/2020 08/21/2020 | $96,00208/21/2020 $96,002 |
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Mainframe Developer Resumes
Designing and figuring out what to include on your resume can be tough, not to mention time-consuming. That's why we put together a guide that is designed to help you craft the perfect resume for becoming a Mainframe Developer. If you're needing extra inspiration, take a look through our selection of templates that are specific to your job.
Learn How To Write a Mainframe Developer Resume
At Zippia, we went through countless Mainframe Developer resumes and compiled some information about how best to optimize them. Here are some suggestions based on what we found, divided by the individual sections of the resume itself.
View Detailed InformationTop Colleges for Mainframe Developers
1. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Cambridge, MA • Private
2. Stanford University
Stanford, CA • Private
3. Harvard University
Cambridge, MA • Private
4. Duke University
Durham, NC • Private
5. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA • Private
6. Georgia Institute of Technology
Atlanta, GA • Public
7. Cornell University
Ithaca, NY • Private
8. Georgetown University
Washington, DC • Private
9. Dartmouth College
Hanover, NH • Private
10. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL • Private
Top Skills For a Mainframe Developer
The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 11.2% of mainframe developers listed db2 on their resume, but soft skills such as troubleshooting skills and detail oriented are important as well.
- DB2, 11.2%
- JCL, 9.6%
- Cics, 7.1%
- Test Scripts, 6.2%
- SQL, 5.5%
- Other Skills, 60.4% See All Mainframe Developer Skills
Best States For a Mainframe Developer
Some places are better than others when it comes to starting a career as a mainframe developer. The best states for people in this position are California, Washington, Rhode Island, and Colorado. Mainframe developers make the most in California with an average salary of $99,040. Whereas in Washington and Rhode Island, they would average $92,941 and $91,545, respectively. While mainframe developers would only make an average of $90,561 in Colorado, you would still make more there than in the rest of the country. We determined these as the best states based on job availability and pay. By finding the median salary, cost of living, and using the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Location Quotient, we narrowed down our list of states to these four.
1. North Carolina
$90,034
Avg. Salary
2. Rhode Island
$91,545
Avg. Salary
3. Texas
$86,655
Avg. Salary