When the 1,000 students graduating this spring from the University of Minnesota Institute of Technology toss their caps into the air, many might have job offers before their tassels even hit the ground. A study published last week by the Information Technology Association of America, an industry trade group, indicated there is a major gap between the supply of qualified workers and labor demand within the information-technology industry. The study found that of the estimated 1.5 million information-technology jobs to be created in the United States this year, companies will only be able to fill about half of those positions. There is no question that the market is tremendously hot.
Information technology is one of the country's fastest growing industries.
Jobs in the field include computer programming, online services, software manufacturing and systems integration. The ITAA is a trade group based in Arlington, Va., representing the U.S. information-technology industry. Microsoft Corp., Oracle Corp. and DeVry are among the group's 11,000 corporate members. Technology skills might become obsolete in months, but personal skills are needed for the long-run. Sharon Kurt Pen Yew, university a ssociate head of computer science, attributes the worker shortage to technology and communication revolutions.