Information Technology jobs: Today and tomorrow
Every week somewhere in the world, there are reports about the shortage of Information Technology (IT) skilled workers. Every month in some cities, there are reports about the salary of IT workers keep getting higher. From the U.S. to Europe, from India to China the demand for IT workers is getting higher as universities could not produce enough of them. Yet at the same time, there are perceptions that IT is no longer “hot” as few years ago which prompts students to select something else to study. A software company owner complained: “It may be a conspiracy of IT workers to keep their salaries higher by spreading false rumors. Fewer people study IT pushes demand for IT higher, which forces company to give them more raise, else they can leave to work for competitors.”
Why are such confusing views about IT jobs? Basically, it could be attributed to the fast changing IT market and the skill trainings in current education systems. There is a big gap between what industry needs and what university provides and unless it changes the problem will remain. There is another misconception that IT jobs would be gone because companies outsource everything to India or China. It is wrong because only some activities can be outsourced but many cannot and there are always plenty of available jobs in the market. Furthermore, the IT field has become more important in every area making IT degree a desirable asset in just about any industry and anywhere.
With high demand in IT, students often ask what range of salaries graduates can get. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, starting salaries for those with a bachelor's degree in IT (Computer science, Software Engineering, Information System Management) in 2011 was $85,500 to $110,000. In China, salary of graduates varied among cities, where Beijing and Shanghai could get higher, but they range from $19,500 to $22,500. In India the average ranges from $28,500 to $34,800.
Today most IT graduates are finding good jobs but this information is not well understood by parents and high-school teachers who have influence over students' choice of what to study in college. The perception of job prospects is often an important consideration in selecting fields to study. Although I do not believe students should chose a field of study just based on job opportunities but they must select on their passion and capability. However, it is a fact that parents often tell their children: “Go out and find an area where you can get a job and make a living.”
Students need to understand that IT is a field where you can advance much faster than others as technology keeps changing it pushes IT people into more strategic positions as there are few of them. On the average, it takes a software developer about 3 years to get into project manager position and 3 more years to get to IT senior manager or director. In business, it takes a business person in finance or accounting about 8 to 12 years to get to director position. The average age of Chief Information Officer (CIO) in the U.S and Europe is about 35 to 42 years old as compare to the similar position of Chief Financial Officer (CFO) average age is about 52 to 62 years old.
Another major misperception is that IT workers often work alone, sit in front of a computer most of the time. In reality, IT requires incredibly collaborative among workers. It involves working in teams to solve problems, and on the average IT workers spend 2 to 3 hour each day on teamwork. Hollywood often portrait IT workers as “computer nerds”, or mad scientists in movies but in reality, IT workers are the most successful socially all over the world. In India, Software Engineers are considered “Heroes” and young girls often said: “No software degree, no marriage”. In S. Korea, software developers in computer games industry are treated like “Rock stars” and “Idols” with thousands of fans and followers.
Today, career opportunities in information technology are plenty. The key factor is choosing which area of this vast field to go into and which training program to enroll in. The difference in degree programs offered reflects the diversity of the field itself, which is continually evolving. For example, there are over a million numbers of jobs in the U.S are currently unfilled and several million positions in European countries that could not find the right skilled people. A lot of students believe that IT is mostly associated with coding and testing but it is misleading because the IT field is much broader than that.
Given the current need for more diversify aspects of information technology, I am confident IT students can look forward to a bright future in many years ahead. Eventually, every company will have to apply IT to improve the business, the more IT they use, the more IT workers they need to keep them updated with technology changes. Anybody looking to go into a career in information technology should not have any problem finding good positions.
Finding job may be the easiest step in IT industry. Choosing among company offers and positions may require some thinking. Students must select the field that suits them most. Last year, one of the most popular openings was in network administration and Web development, which includes both intranet and Internet work. As companies expand into these environments to communicate and disseminate information, business units within them need webmasters and content developers to provide supports the expansion. With the advancement of “Software as a Service” and Cloud computing, the demand for graduates that have both technical and business skills are at all time high. Currently degrees in Information system management or Service management are very “hot” in the U.S and Europe. As more business such as banking, financial institution are automating their process for better efficiency and security, Information management and network security people are in high demand. Students with IT skills in content development, business transaction and business intelligence often receive several job offers before they even graduate.
As much as technology has already advanced to date, new areas are still emerging which make IT a fast growing field. The biggest emerging new areas of IT involves how people interface with computers or "Human Computing Interaction”; How machine can learn and make decision or “Machine leaning” and “Artificial Intelligence”; How a machine can replace people to do certain tasks or “Robotics”; How to get the right information to the right people in search engine, text mining, speech recognition, and question answering in “Language Technologies”.
In the near future, people may not have to use keyboard or mouse as most computers understand human languages. More people will be speaking with their computers or smart phones using voice activation and artificial intelligence software. The next generation of computer will understand your command and know how to think ahead so they can response to your needs faster. Who know that maybe ten years from now, students may ask professors “'what is a mouse click?" because at that time most computers will understand voice command and do not need any other devices.
Sources
- Blogs of Prof. John Vu, Carnegie Mellon University
