Rebecca Osselton

"My personality types are: coach, developer, influencer. These match very well to my current role as a Research Software Engineer. RSE's work with university research staff to help them develop project ideas and build software. The role includes the training of University staff to give them experience of using programming languages and applications, so good personal skills are important. Being able to communicate well is very important when building software, as you need to be able to develop good relationships with the project owner and ideally also the users of the product to understand what they really need. You also need to be able to explain technical ideas in a straightforward way.The developer type directly relates to what I do on a daily basis. Writing code is a creative process and can be done alone or a part of a wider team. While maths ability is often quoted as being necessary for software development, I would put a much greater emphasis on 3 main things: being able to think logically, problem solving and attention to detail."

"I'm a senior software engineer that manages a team of research software engineers. In the past, Ive built applications for research, education and health. I've worked on many varied and interesting projects in the past 20 years. While working for a local College, I developed an online e-learning platform for distance learning students. For the NHS, I helped them adopt software that allowed them to move from paper charts at the end of the bed to a software system that runs on tablets and electronic whiteboards based in the hospital wards. The whiteboards are used by nurses and doctors to check the health of their patients and the tablets are used by staff to enter patient vital signs such as blood pressure and heart rate into the system.At the University I work with my team to manage software projects that bring in money, benefit the wider community and support international research areas. What I enjoy most about software development is that you can build products that make people's lives better. IT constantly changes so there are always opportunities to learn new skills!There are lots of stereotypes about programmers being exclusively male and of a certain personality type. Software development is a great career for women. There are lots of supportive community groups and IT events where you can broaden your knowledge and meet other developers.Staring salaries for software developers vary between public and private sectors and geographical area, but would typically be above £28,000."

"I originally did a BA Hons Degree in Communication Studies, but afterwards ended up in a variety of non-graduate roles, including working in the printing industry and self-employment. Eventually though, I took a leap of faith and did a Masters conversion course in Computing Science (although I knew very little about IT at the time). I think this was one of the best decisions I've ever made.After several years of working as a research software engineer at Newcastle University, Ive been promoted to a team lead position."

"I have two school age children, so much of my spare time is spent with my family. We like baking cakes and cooking together at weekends. I also do yoga and karate to help me keep fit and well. I enjoy getting out to see friends and spending time in my garden."

"I manage a team of Research Software Engineers with skills in web and mobile development. We all have our own individual projects, but also work together on larger projects and to deliver software training and other events. We tend to be quiet in the office, but we have regular coffee breaks in breakout areas when we sit, chat and eat biscuits!My team are responsible for two software projects at any given time. I need to have oversight of all my staff projects and also work with my own manager on more strategic initiatives. I still write software, but more time now is given to management activities and project planning.When writing code, I'm usually responsible for the whole process of software development from start to finish, so I'll design, build and deliver a software solution. Part of this process is doing software testing, bug fixing and writing technical documentation. I also respond to emails and have meetings with my project teams. "

" A level: Art, English Literature, Communication Studies BSc Hons: Communication Studies MSc Computing Science"