sap abap developer or java developer

[Former Member]

hi

I am an engineer (fresher) and i have two job offers in my hand one is java/j2ee developer and other is sap abap developer

i am not able to decide which one to choose and i have no idea that which one is better than other.

So if u were in my place then which offer will you accept

Thanks

Viron

[Sandeep_Kumar]

ABAP developer

[OttoGold]

I bet there are some more reasons for one or the other.

Examples:

- salary, benefits

- your new boss (have you meet him/ her already? does he/she want you or a "source"), your new job (can you do it? do you find it challenging? is that a good start for the future career or a dead end? will you become a part of a small or a big team?)

- will you have to commute to work?

- can you do Java or ABAP? if you don´t know ABAP, do you find it challenging to learn it?

and many more...

regards Otto

[Former Member]

Hi Viron,

I had to make a similar decision myself a number of years ago. Based on my personal experience I would say the following:

*ABAP Vs Java*

- ABAP is a business procedural language, only used with SAP. Therefore you need to ask yourself the question do you want to restrict yourself to working with one product. Also more importantly do you enjoy writing business related reports? i.e. if you would prefer to program games on mobile phones or be involved in developing a cutting edge software product then ABAP is not for you.

- As a general rule ABAP jobs command a higher salary over Java (in the UK anyway) as it is a more specialised skill. There are far more Java developers around.

- You may feel like ABAP is a step back after programming in Java. Although ABAP supports object orientated programming, web services, web portals ect.. this is not commonly adopted. There is of course a disclaimer here as if you are going to work for a consultancy on green field SAP implementations then you are far more likely to adopt and use the above technologies. However if you are working on an older SAP system or in a support environment most companies are still using the standard R/3 Interface i.e. no web portal and the majority of their reports have not been developed using OO Programming Techniques.

- You could get the best of both worlds if you can get a job as a webdynpro Java developer in SAP. Then pick up ABAP on the side. Having knowledge of both languages would make you highly employable as a web portals developer.

- If you are strongly motivated towards Business Application Programming but would prefer to keep your options open to move into another area later in your career. Then you could look at working with Oracle Fusion, it is a software product based on Java. It is also the 2nd largest ERP tool on the market just behind SAP. This way you are building on your Java programming skills but not restricting yourself to working with an ERP software product in the future.

Hope this is of some help.

Regards,

Phil

[Former Member]

Hi, I am a java developer with 2 years of experience. I want to know whether opting for sap ABAP would be a good idea after having 2 years of experience in java.

If I go for ABAP now, I'll again have to start my career as a fresher and I am confused whether it would be a beneficial decision.

Also I want to know whether my java skill and knowledge will be of any use to me and it will be considered or not after the switch. Please help.