Opportunities in computer science and information technology are at their highest point in recent years, including high salaries, multiple job offers, and a variety of perks for luring individuals into joining a company. In general, students who have graduated from college make the best fit in the corporate world. Those of you who accept full-time jobs before graduation may be the first to be released by the companies during cutbacks. From a study conducted by the Junglee Corporation of Sunnyvale, California, about 76% of high-tech jobs required a bachelor’s degree, 16% called for a master’s degree and 8% required a Ph.D. degree.  Several companies including Lucent Technologies, IBM, Telcordia, and Dell Computer Corp., target schools with large African-American enrollments for their special recruitment programs.  These companies recruit students to permanent positions after providing many of them with work experience via co-ops and internships.  Recruiters are working overtime these days trying to find qualified individuals to fill many job openings.

There are more than 200,000 jobs available for skilled computer science professionals; whereas, the number of graduates receiving a bachelor's degree in computer science has dropped to 24,200 persons per year.  This shortage means pay is rising sharply, where the average salary for a beginning computer science major with a B.S. degree is about $60,000.  Universities are not increasing enrollment fast enough in computer science, and as a result, a shortage of workers means that companies cannot rely 100 percent on college graduates.  More aggressive efforts are needed to attract a higher percentage of minorities and women to the field of computer science.  In 1997, only about 26% of the undergraduate computer science degrees were awarded to women. This represents a drop from a high of 34% in 1984, and computer science was the only science that experienced such a drop.  For African Americans, both women and men, the situation is even worse.  In 1998, 4% of the B.S. degrees in computer science went to African Americans.  For graduate degrees, these percentages are lower.  Studies have shown that if these underrepresented groups were fully participating in the information technology (IT) workforce, there would be no IT shortage.  Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) must play a critical role in the development of this high-tech workforce pipeline.  Some universities such as the University of California, Irvine and Carnegie Mellon University are putting in place initiatives to increase their computer science enrollments.  Sensing the difficulty in finding qualified personnel for technology ventures and electronic commerce, online recruitment firms are emerging and getting creative.

Government research laboratories are struggling to retain the nation’s top scientists as high-tech companies lure workers away with the promise of huge salaries and stock options.  Growing attrition rates in the next several years could threaten the quality of government research, including projects involving national security, administrators say.  Leading research national laboratories such as Los Alamos, Lawrence Livermore, and Sandia have all seen attrition rates jump into double digits, compared with the traditional four percent.

The high-tech job shortage is not confined to the programmers, engineers, computer scientists, and system analysts.  There is a shortage of workers to fill jobs that require more general computer skills.  The U.S. Department of Education estimates that over 60% of all jobs this year will require technical competency.   As students, the information technology (IT) worker shortage is an opportunity and a challenge.  It is estimated that by the year 2005, there will be a shortage of over 1 million IT workers.  By the year 2002, the Internet will have directly created 5.8 million jobs in the United States and 3 million in six European countries (France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom).  While this is good news for students with respect to expanded opportunities, it may be bad news for our overall economy.  Undergraduate students with knowledge of modern operating systems, and languages such as C, C++, JAVA, and Visual Basic are positioned for success in the marketplace.  Accordingly, such students can expect increased salaries, multiple job offers and benefits as companies seek to attract and retain high quality workers.  For example, Accenture recently announced that it will invest $200 million into e-commerce-related companies on behalf of its employees and kick in an additional $100 million each subsequent year.  The wealth of these units will then be shared as bonuses and benefits among the company’s workers.

Preparing for a Computer Science-Oriented Career

During the course of an undergraduate student's experience, a variety of courses are required; some of which are more technical-oriented than others.  This mix of courses (e.g., math, physics, social science, computer science) experienced by students provides them a much broader educational base and hopefully help fashion their abilities to better engage in critical thinking and problem solving.

In preparation for careers (not just jobs) in computer science and information technology, you need to balance training (e.g., mastery of programming languages, Internet fundamentals and operating system's usage) with "good" education (e.g., mastery of the ability to apply fundamental principles, theories, and concepts, to learn and independently acquire new knowledge).  Training is very specialized, and with the rapid changes in technology, it tends to be quite transient. On the other hand, education is more long lasting and provides those underpinnings, which will enable you to bootstrap yourself into knowledge upon demand.  In other words, you must learn "how to learn" and be able to "think" logically.  Once equipped with a sound education, then any training required for you becomes relative straightforward.  Students who exhibit a good balance between education and specialized training are more likely to display those problem-solving abilities that many employers are seeking.  Typically, it is these type of individuals who become the "movers and shakers" in the companies; hence, climbing the corporate latter with a greater probability of success.

Technical Skills in Greatest Demand

Many technology job seekers, wowed by all the hype of a labor shortage, sometimes think that a position is theirs for the asking.  With the right skills and experiences, you've certainly got an edge.  However, as you prepare for computer science-related careers, it is important to know what specific skills are expected.  Employers cite that their most critical needs are programmers who can handle software systems such as Oracle, C, C++, Java, and Visual Basic which solve complex business problems and allow companies to communicate over the Internet.  It is also expected that you are familiar with UNIX and Window 2000 operating systems.   Several companies want students with skills in the area of Web design and Web maintenance. You can see what employers are looking for by checking newspaper help-wanted classifieds, asking technical college recruiting persons, or browsing through the Internet job sites.  Two excellent Internet sites to use are THE BLACK COLLEGIAN Online, www.black-collegian.com and IMDiversity.com, www.imdiversity.com.

Non-Technical Skills Needed

Aside from your technical skills and good G.P.A., employers require you to be able to maneuver through the workplace with a professional attitude.  Students who have had co-ops and internships tend to adapt to the corporate world rather easy; whereas those without such experience sometimes have difficulty.  But fortunately, many employers are aware of this and have mentoring programs in place to help avoid this situation.  Also, high on companies’ lists are good oral and written communication skills, participation in team activities and membership in clubs, preferably in leadership roles.  In general, employers want well-rounded candidates with excellent people skills and good work ethics.

Initiatives to Address the High-Tech Job Shortage

Twenty-five companies have pledged to spend at least $1 million annually over the next 10 years to help women and minorities prepare for high-tech careers.  The commitments, which were announced April 6, 2000 at a White House meeting, is part of President Clinton’s One America initiative to broaden opportunities for minorities.  The companies involved are Adobe Systems, America Online, American Express, Accenture, AT & T, BellSouth, BP, Consolidated Edison, Dupont, Eastman Kodak, Exxon, Ford Motor Co., General Electric, GTE, IBM, Intel, Lucent Technologies, MCI Worldcom, Siemens, Sun Microsystems, TRW, United Technologies, and Xerox.  These companies plan to use the pledged funds to create internships, scholarships, job training opportunities, and math and science programs for women, minorities and the disabled.  This effort will be headed by BellSouth CEO Duane Ackerman and Eastman Kodak Chairman George Fisher.

Many high-tech companies depend on H-1B visa workers to make up for the shortage of domestic tech workers.  The U.S. employs over five million high-tech workers, about 255,000 of which are visa holders.  Lobbyist from the tech industry have pushed Congress hard to act on a bill to increase the number of H-1B visas issued each year from 115,000 to 200,000. According to a recent report from the Research Council, salaries at U.S. high-tech firms are not increasing as quickly as they could because H-1B workers are accepting low wages in hopes of becoming permanent residents.  The U.S. Department of Labor this year is awarding $80 million in grants to local high-tech training programs, using part of the $500 fee paid by H-1B visas applicants.  One grant recipient, the San Francisco City Private Industry Council, will use the money to provide 250 citizens, mostly from low-income workers and minorities, with seven months of high-tech training.

Words of Warning

Although there are many opportunities with respect to the job market for computer science majors, a word of caution is in order.  It is important to be aware of the cyclic nature of the economic good times.  We are experiencing one of the longest periods of prosperity in the history of this nation (i.e. oftentimes booming stock market, low unemployment rates, low interest and inflation rates, etc).  Consequently, it is easy to take things for granted.  Just in case, some of these positive economic indicators change over the next year or so, we may experience a slowdown in the growth rate of many high-tech firms, thus, affecting the lucrative employment opportunities we see today.  For example, in recent months, several of the dot-com companies have folded.  And some forecasters are predicting economic slowdown during the next year.  If the employment rate of companies decreases, then their selection process for prospective employees will become more competitive.  As such, students with the best credentials will prevail.  Therefore, you should work hard to have the highest quality of credentials in order to enhance your marketability, even when times are not so good (i.e., be smart - prepare yourself for the worst case scenario).

Parting Thoughts

Several job opportunities await each computer science graduate at all levels (i.e., B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. degrees). Some employers are making attractive offers to undergraduates for both part-time and full-time jobs before they graduate.  As previously mentioned, companies are looking for candidates who are skilled in database software made by Oracle, C, C++, Visual Basic, and JAVA.  Also, experience with UNIX and Windows 2000 operating systems is essential.  If you know how to design Web pages, this may also be a plus.  In addition to these technical skills, and an attractive academic record, companies are looking for well-rounded individuals whose college experiences display an appropriate balance between specialized training and a good liberal arts education. Again, employers are seeking candidates with a good work ethic and excellent people skills.

The lack of a sufficient number of qualified computer science graduates remains a sizable problem for prospective employers in both private industry and the public sector. There’re still too many unfilled high-tech positions in industry and government, too few students available to attend graduate school, and numerous unfilled computer science/computer engineering faculty positions in colleges and universities. In general, students who have graduated from college make the best fit in the corporate world and will most likely be maintained by organizations after any downsizing. For African-American computer science and information technology graduates, there is a high-tech paradise awaiting you.  While in college, prepare yourself well for a career, not just a job. A world of opportunities exists for you to latch onto an exciting and stimulating career.