Computer field career?

Career Opportunities in the Computer Field

• Answer:

  Computers play an integral role in modern society. They impact nearly every area of modern life. As computer technology continues to progress, the number of career opportunities in the computer field will continue to increase. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects job growth in various computer fields at a rate of 17 to 30 percent through 2018. Computer Hardware Engineers Computer hardware engineers design and supervise the manufacturing of computer technologies. These can include anything from entire circuit boards and computer systems to something as small as the microprocessor on which the systems operate. The BLS notes that the rapid growth of the computer field as a whole has resulted mainly from the work of computer hardware engineers who, year after year, have built better, faster systems. Although the field of engineering as a whole is expected to experience only an 11 percent job growth rate through 2018, this number should remain higher in rapidly advancing fields like computer technology. A bachelor's degree is required to work in this field, but many employers now prefer a master's degree. The median annual salary of computer engineers, as reported by the BLS in 2008, was $61,738. Computer and Information Systems Managers Computer and information systems managers are part of a rapidly expanding field in computers. The BLS predicts job growth in this sector to be 17 percent from 2008 to 2018. These professionals are primarily responsible for the management of other lower-level information technology (IT) workers. They are largely responsible for the planning and implementation of systems upgrades for companies and educational institutions, when necessary. These professionals must be keenly aware of any changes taking place within the industry in order to keep their employer's systems running efficiently and smoothly. The minimum requirement for work in this field is a bachelor's degree in information technology or a related field, but many employers favor candidates with a bachelor's degree in computer IT and a master's degree in business management or a similar field. This highly lucrative career provided a median annual salary of $112,210 in May 2008, according to the BLS. Database Administrators Those wanting to seek opportunities in the field of computer database administration will not be disappointed with the job prospects. The BLS projects 30 percent growth in the number of jobs in this field by 2018, a rate nearly triple the average rate of all other professions. Database administrators are closely linked to computer network and systems administrators. Database administrators use management software in order to retrieve and store data. When systems upgrades occur, database administrators oversee the transfer of information from one database to another. A bachelor's degree is required to work in this field. The May 2008 figures by the BLS indicate that the median annual salary of database administrators was $69,740.