Future jobs part 2
According to a new report from the World Economic Forum at Davos, the advance of robotics and automation technologies are moving faster than most people expected. Many experts predict that by 2025 about half of all the jobs in the world will be done by “Smart” machines. It means approximately 75 million jobs will disappear worldwide by 2022, but many new jobs will be created, most of them are in the technology areas. Today, technology has become an indispensable part of every society, it is integrated into the everyday lives of people and impacted everything.
An expert speaker at the forum said: “Technologies such as Big data analytics, cloud computing, machine learning, Artificial intelligence, and robotics could create more opportunities for countries that have workers trained in these areas. The challenge for many governments and businesses is how to re-train current workers as well as train future workers to develop skills in these areas.”
According to the report, there are over 6 million Information Technology jobs open across the world but the number is expected to increase in the next few years. Among them, the field of cyber-security alone has over 1.2 million unfilled jobs since it is difficult to find qualified workers. As more businesses are dependent on information systems, the security threats are increasing significantly. Among all the jobs in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) areas Information Technology has the highest demand now and it will continue in the near future.”
Based on a global study, most companies want their workers to have at least a basic knowledge of technology and the ability to learn more as it is evolved. A lifelong learning skill is necessary for all workers in the 21st century. To survive and thrive in this fast-changing world, a college education or technical certifications are needed for most entry-level jobs. Currently, IT careers are broad and expanding quickly into many areas, from servicing, building networks, develop applications, to designing software systems and protecting computer systems from external threats. Some jobs require few months (Certificate training) to two years of training (Associate degree), but most require a full four-year college education (Bachelor’s degree) or even more.
A few years ago, there were only a few IT careers in which students could learn such as Testing, Programming, Software development, Website development, or Network administration. Today, many new career areas have emerged and provided more opportunities than ever. Students who study different fields in college could obtain additional training and work in multiple disciplined areas. For example, Information System Management is a combination of Computer and Business. Data science is a combination of Computer and Statistics. Computer Graphic Design is a combination of Computer and Arts. Computer-Aided Design is a combination of Computer and Product design (i.e., Clothing or Fashion design or architecture etc.) etc.
At the forum, several experts also warned that unless the current education system can change quickly and focusing on certain skills, many people will not be able to adequately prepared the future jobs. Many of these skills are not just technology but also “Soft-skills” such as Collaboration, Teamwork, Creativity, Critical thinking, Independent thinking, and Problem-solving., etc.
Sources
- Blogs of Prof. John Vu, Carnegie Mellon University
