Computer science enrollment drops as demand rises p1 - Military - Career Choices - Military Times EDGE

A life working with computers conjures up images of sitting in a cramped cubicle hunched over a keyboard or fiddling with wires in a dimly lit room.

In the corporate world, those people are often known as “computer monkeys.”

The perception is that it’s a dull life, a geeky life, a life few people want.

There is also a perception that there are few jobs available in computer-related fields, which couldn’t be further from the truth, said Jeffrey Vitter, dean of the College of Science and a computer science professor at Purdue University.

That view is reflected in the number of people studying computer science in college and entering computer-related fields. Although little can be done these days without the assistance of computer technology, creating more jobs for those with computer skills, the number of people being trained to work in the field is dropping nationwide.

“The last five years, enrollments have dropped by half,” Vitter said. “Nationwide, there are more jobs in the U.S. in computing than there ever have been, even at the height of the dot-com craze. The 10-year count for growth in new jobs is that there will be 1.4 million net new jobs over a 10-year period.

That’s the hottest growth area of any area at all in the science and engineering fields.”

The job growth presents a remarkable opportunity for students to get into a field where the starting salary is often $50,000 to $80,000 a year, Vitter said.

‘Every job relies on a computer’

The software engineering students at Indiana Tech know their friends think they’re geeks, and their parents understand little about their future careers. But they also know they are the first people their friends turn to when they need help with technology, a fairly frequent occurrence.

“I get a lot of crap from the guys on how much time we spend in [the computer lab],” Tommy Rodda said. “If we’re not doing homework because we have to, we’re doing homework because it’s fun.”

Rodda has known for a long time that he wanted to do something with computers as a career.

“I couldn’t get away from them,” he said.

Although he didn’t know exactly what he wanted to study, Rodda knew he was interested in video games, as well. Studying software engineering gives him the flexibility to enter any number of computer-related fields when he graduates.

Classmate Brad Taylor is interested in using his degree in medical technology or military systems. Fellow student John Gallias is thinking about developing education software and working as a technology consultant for schools.

“Every job relies on a computer now,” Taylor said.

Monique Anderson, director of software engineering at Indiana Tech, said most people don’t realize the versatility that comes with a computer degree, particularly software engineering.

“You can do anything,” she said. “You can go work for places like Google, Microsoft, Yahoo, gaming [companies], Mercedes-Benz. You can pretty much take it and spin it into anything you want to.”

The fear that it will lead to a job sitting in a cubicle eight hours a day typing code is a turnoff, Anderson said. That is why schools such as Indiana Tech are trying to show students that working with computers doesn’t condemn them to isolation in a dark corner.

Classes include instruction in how to work in teams on long-term projects. And Indiana Tech is developing a degree program that will start in the fall in computer security and investigations, which blends criminal justice and information security.

Another turnoff to entering computer science programs is the impression that the work is too difficult.

“They’re intimidated,” Rodda said. “[They think] it’s way too much work and not enough play. It’s really the exact opposite.”

TOP COMPUTER JOBS

The Department of Labor counts computer jobs among the nation’s fastest-growing occupations.

The following are four of the top five fastest-growing occupations that require a bachelor’s degree:

• Network systems and data communications analysts

• Computer software engineers, applications

• Computer software engineers, system software

• Network and computer systems administrators

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics