ACM programming contest ACM photo tour Read about former contestants Careers in computing In an industry where signing bonuses have become commonplace along with extensive scouting and recruiting programs to spot budding talent, finishing at the top can mean big bucks for students when they graduate and begin the search for employment in the IT industry. According to industry observers, there is an estimated 200,000 vacant IT jobs in the US alone. And, demand is outstripping supply. A February 1997 Information Technology Association of America survey showed US computer science graduates have shriveled by 43 percent from 42,000 in 1986 to 24,000 in 1994.
Some people still are afraid they're going to be staring at a screen all day.
One of the purposes of the competition is to stimulate interest in computer sciences and show that it isn't all about coding. To help expand the contest's reach, we selected IBM as the worldwide sponsor because of their global presence, resources, and ability to provide a single source solution. Through its five-year worldwide sponsorship of the contest, IBM is providing software, services, hardware, and volunteers. And, IBM gets first round draft picks. It's meant to test students' ability to solve problems logically and to work together to test the solution.