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Employers seek IT workers who can interact
with others.
The discussion about career preparation
for information technology occupations reveals that there is
no universal education and
training requirement for jobseekers in information
technology. A computer-related degree may be the easiest and
most direct route
to take, but it is by no means the only
one. There is a variety of ways in which workers can demonstrate
the computer knowledge
and skills necessary to get a job in one
of several computer-related occupations.
Practical experience, although difficult to measure and quantify,
is important and allows
jobseekers flexibility- especially for those
who do not have a computer-related degree.
Information technology workers must continually
acquire new skills to remain in this dynamic field. To this
end, the role of
community colleges in educating and retraining
information technology workers should continue to grow in the
coming years. A
May 2000 Urban Institute report, "The Role
of Commu- nity Colleges in Expanding the Supply of Information
Technology
Workers," says that these schools conduct
a large amount of information technology training and contribute
to retraining both
veteran workers and those from other fields.
Technology changes at such a rapid pace
that retraining and updating information technology skills is
essen- tial, even for
workers already in their jobs. The emphasis
on nondegree programs, such as employer training and self-study,
also will rise in
importance. And just as colleges and universities
are increasingly using distance education as an efficient and
cost-saving measure,
organizations are using it to train and
retrain their employees in information technology.
There are several ways that individu- als
may prepare to become an informa- tion technology worker. At
first glance, the tracks
that Maria and Spencer took to get jobs
in their respective computer- related occupations might seem
unor- thodox. Yet with
rapidly changing technology and increasingly
flexible training requirements, the routes they took should
remain commonplace.
For more information
Consult the 2002-03 Occupational
Outlook Handbook to learn more about specific information
technology occupations. Along with training
requirements, the Handbook provides
details about the nature of the work, working
conditions, earnings, employ- ment, and
job outlook for the following information technology occupations:
Computer and
information systems managers; computer hardware
engi- neers; computer programmers; computer software engineers;
computer
support specialists and systems administrators;
and systems analysts, computer scien- tists, and database administrators.
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