These days, many people are complaining about a lack of well-paid job vacancies. But in fact, there are plenty of jobs available in the technical and IT-related fields. Many employers claim they are struggling to fill job vacancies with qualified applicants who have Internet technology credentials. And even though the prospects for IT jobs are very positive, many students avoid studying computer technology because of a perception that such jobs are “boring.”
Research conducted by Crac, a careers charity, indicates that the majority of students, while having an overwhelmingly positive impression of IT professionals themselves, believe that working in the field would be too boring. Statistically, more than 60% of non-computer major students responded with a reluctance to work in the IT industry because of the perceived boredom factor. At the same time, a majority of the students questioned also understood that there were plentiful job opportunities in IT to students willing to pursue that line of work.
In Britain, organizations are encouraging students to study IT related fields with work-experience programs. By being exposed to the positive aspects of working within the IT sector, students often find these jobs are much more diverse and social than they originally expected.
The survey also shows that women are severely underrepresented within the IT field, and the trend is likely to get worse in the decade to come. According to ZDNet.com, between 2001 and 2007 the percentage of women applying for IT related degrees in educational institutions fell from 18% to 15%.
The perceived boredom of IT jobs is particularly troubling in America, where many high-tech employers routinely struggle to fill these types of positions. It’s also one of the reasons that students from India and Asia are often sought after by top American corporations — there is simply not enough homegrown talent with IT training to fill all the positions available.
With the job market currently being in the doldrums, you might think that American students would reconsider IT careers, but the trends would indicate otherwise. Meanwhile, in India, China, Malaysia and Singapore, record numbers of students are applying for IT related degrees in colleges and universities. This trend has many analysts concerned about the United States, as the country’s ability to keep up with technology is critical to competing in an increasingly IT-based world economy.
Perhaps what is needed is a major media campaign extolling the virtues of working within the IT field; in essence, a movie or television program to do for the IT community what films like “Top Gun” did for careers in naval aviation. For the time being though, students are using their computers more than ever — they’re just reluctant to get involved with the technology that makes it all possible.
I know it was what made me leave the IT department. Dealing with constant problems was a challenge at first but after 90 days you start seeing the same ones over and over again.
It gets old fast. If you are great at this job, they wont want to let you go and promote you soon. You have to ask for what you want. They WILL keep you there forever if you let them.
That and management having unrealistic expectations. No I can’t update software on 200 computers and six servers overnight
Comment by Michael Johnson — June 27, 2008 @ 11:26 am