Aligning Expectations and Reality about IT/Broadband Education: Perceptions of Job Competencies by Students, New Professionals and Employers

Introduction Broadband is a recent phenomenon in many non-metropolitan (nonmetro) communities. Sixty-two percent of nonmetro households maintain a home broadband subscription (U.S. Census, 2010), resulting in decreased access to an information-based economy (Katsinas & Moeck, 2002). A key barrier to adding broadband connectivity is the availability of specialized IT/broadband technicians (McClure, et al., 2011a, 2011b). The IT/broadband professional working in nonmetro settings may require a broader set of competencies to perform in an environment that has little or no access to broadband technology (Relles & Tierney, 2013). Not enough is known about whether IT/broadband education in two and four-year colleges meets nonmetro employer needs. Objective of Paper This paper will examine current IT/broadband students’ job competency expectations provided in IT/broadband college curricula, recognize the actual job competencies new IT/broadband professionals need on the job, and identify any gaps between these competencies and the staffing needs reported by Northwest Florida employer job postings. RQ1 – Are student perceptions of job competencies, as provided in IT/broadband college curricula, misaligned with the employers’ expectations for job competencies derived from job posting ads? RQ2 – Are new professionals perceptions of job competencies needed misaligned with the employers’ expectations for job competencies derived from job posting ads? RQ3 – How are current students perceptions of job competencies aligned/misaligned with new professionals’ perceptions of job competencies needed? These questions summarize preliminary inquiries of the larger National Science Foundation Advanced Technological Education research headed up by the authors and is based on unpublished results. Method of Analysis Using content analysis, this study examines current students’ expectations of job competencies provided in IT/broadband college curricula, new professionals’ perception of job competencies needed, and employers’ desired job competencies from job posting ads. Job competencies are text mined from 225 job posting ads and extracted in as knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs). These job competencies were standardized using two IT/broadband curriculum frameworks (Computer Information Technology and Network Systems Technology) from the Florida Department of Education (DOE) and compared with the list of KSAs from job posting ads. Focus group interviews and card sorting exercises will identify current students’ and new professionals’ perceptions of competencies provided by IT/broadband curricula. Results will be compared with the desired job competencies from job posting ads (RQ1, RQ2). The analyses from both students’ and new professionals’ focus group interviews will be triangulated for further analysis and interpretation (RQ3). Data Collection During October, 2013, a purposive sample of job posting ads (N=225) were collected from 13 online and offline sources to obtain a non-representative sample of job announcements in areas served by Tallahassee Community College (TCC) and Chipola College (Chipola). Current IT/broadband students and new IT/broadband professionals will participate in focus groups and complete card sorting to identify and prioritize the IT/broadband competency lists derived from the job posting ads. Novelty of Research Studies show that two and four-year college programs play a role in certification, training and as a gateway to the four-year degree (Katsinas & Moeck, 2002). However, improved alignment of IT/broadband curricula with nonmetro employer needs is indicated to provide suitable competencies in IT/broadband technicians, developing workforce competencies for continued economic growth in Northwest Florida. Motivated by national broadband and education policy and guided by resources such as O*Net Online, IT/broadband competencies can be refined to support this effort (Partnership for 21st Century Skills, 2004)