For students working toward technology degrees, the future employment outlook seems bright. The Bureau of Labor Statistics anticipates fast employment growth within the industry. Some technology jobs might offer more opportunities than others.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) includes 12 wide-ranging categories for technology occupations, the Association for Computing Machinery notes. Within these categories can be several different careers for which students working toward technology degrees might train. Some of the greatest employment growth might be enjoyed by computer software engineers, network systems and data communications analysts, computer systems administrators and those involved with computer systems software and applications, information from the Bureau shows.
A student's choice of technology degrees at the bachelor's level might include anything from computer science to game art and design. Mt. Sierra College in Monrovia, Calif., alone offers bachelor degree programs in media arts & design with a choice of concentrations in graphic design, game art and design, visual effects and digital video, or multimedia arts and design. Mt. Sierra also offers information technology degrees with concentrations in telecommunications technology, information security, and computer information technology.
Westwood College, which has locations in California, Colorado, Georgia, Illinois, Texas and Virginia, offers bachelor's degrees in game software development, major network management and more. Because the institution is considered a Cisco Networking Academy, students might gain skills that can ready them for becoming certified Cisco professionals.
An article in the March 2009 edition of Network World reported on the debate as to whether business or computer science skills were more important as far as the country's competitiveness. Students at some institutions might get the best of both worlds. At the Newport Business Institute in Lower Burrell, Pa., for example, students can work toward a bachelor's degree in business administration that emphasizes microcomputer applications or accounting and computer application. The Newport Business Institute also offers a degree in business information and technology software application and programming. Where the microcomputer applications program is designed to prepare students for careers as information and software specialists, systems operators, software consultants, data entry, computer sales and more, the accounting and computer application offering can prepare students for careers that include account managers, internal auditors, accounting payroll specialists, public, cost and tax accountants, according to the Newport Business Institute website.
Students at other institutions might instead opt for technology minors rather than technology degrees. Institutions such as West Virginia Wesleyan College in Buckhannon, W. Va., offer opportunities to major in computer science or computer information science, as well as to choose a computer science minor. Northwestern College in St. Paul, Minn., offers computer information systems and management information systems minors.
Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., also offers technology minors. Nova Southeastern's information technology minor according to the institution, can be combined with almost any major except for those such as computer information systems, computer science. With majors in these areas, students might find work in in-demand fields such as network and system administrators, computer engineers and more, information from the Nova Southeastern University web site shows.
Technology is considered one of the STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) areas of study, which educators and government officials have been encouraging. Students working toward technology degrees are likely to find an array of scholarships and grants that can help offset the cost of their college and university studies and reduce the amount of debt that they take on.
Like technology, computer science degree jobs are moving to the forefront of desirable options for career paths. The likelihood of tech students gravitating to online course programs is high as this is indeed their forte. Graduates will appreciate the convenience as these are fields where updating information via online education is lifelong.
