A recent study by CareerBuilder.com showed that 37 percent of the companies actively planned to recruit veterans for open positions over the next one year. Although the figure remains similar to what it was a year ago, it is up from 33 percent in 2014 and 27 percent in 2013.

ComputerWorld’s list of the 100 Best Places to Work for 2014 in IT included many that hired veterans. The publication honored several leading companies that have excelled in their commitment to hire veterans into the IT arena.

Talent Pool

According to Tony Odierno, vice president of veteran and military affairs at JPMorgan Chase, the military represents a tremendous talent pool that many companies can tap into. Cybersecurity and IT are major focuses in the military, so a lot of service members are coming out with those kinds of skills. The same threats in many cases the military faces is the same concerns and issues that the private sector deals with as well.

Former Air Force captain Elizabeth D’Angelo, currently a software developer and Integrator at USAA, an organization which is committed to selecting at least 30 percent of its workforce from within the military, provides a veteran’s perspective about a career in IT.

Mission Over

On paper, Elizabeth says, ‘veterans’ job skills may not seem like an exact fit, but they are quick learners and adaptable. They share similar core values, and they will work until a mission is complete,” says D’Angelo.

Now, let’s take a look at 5 of the top IT jobs for veterans:

Top Five

Data scientists

They earn around $115,000 per year and were also ranked as #9 on the top 25 jobs in America for 2015 according to Glassdoor. The demand for data scientists is quite high too. All companies have a presence online today, and they need people to store and manage data which will help them make better decisions for their business. Veterans will need very little additional education in order to be qualified for this job.

Solutions architects

They earn a median salary of around $200,000 a year and are supposed to be problem solvers with a decent mix of both technical and business skills. They usually work closely with their clients to get feedback on their products and then offer solutions accordingly. Once again, additional education will be required for this although most veterans won’t find it too difficult.

Mobile Developers

The median salary here is around $90,000 but they are in very high demand since companies across this entire industry can benefit from including mobile apps in their plans. That being said, there aren’t too many military jobs which can easily translate into app development.

Project Managers

Their median salary is around $106,000, and this is perhaps the easiest transition point for most veterans. The job could vary quite a bit from organization to organization, but the foundational skills which are required are very similar to what they learn in the military.

Software Engineers

The median salary here is around $95,000, and there are thousands of openings since they are in very high demand. Companies are always looking for software engineers to help with their online presence apart from helping with their other projects. If you can apply for a software engineer job as a veteran with the required skills, you will have a major advantage.