Information Systems Degree has highest unemployment rate

binarysoul

Am I surprised by this? No.

Ok relax I know I'm in Canada and the research is from the US, but maybe those south of the border can comment.
By the way, Workopolis is one of Canada's highest job sources, similar to Dice, so they're pretty credible.

Was studying worth it? The university degrees with the highest (and lowest) unemployment rates - Workopolis

ajs1976

IS has become more and more popular over the last decade and supply may be outgrowing demand.

Employers want experience. They have been burned by to many paper tigers. How many graduates get internships or have real world experience?

Mrock4

I'm not surprised if it's true. The last 10 years the amount of technical schools, online colleges, and brick and mortar schools offering IT degrees has increased dramatically. As a result, so many people outside of this field think IT is a goldmine no matter what job you're doing- so they snatch a degree, with no experience, and realize they are now qualified to take phone calls and help users remotely, and for much less than the $100k they expected.

Just my $.02, of course. I've got no problem with IT degrees in general, but I can't help but feel like schools have really capitalized on the perception that IT is a money tree. Ironically, I feel the schools have built their own money tree in doing so!

KeithC

The statistics are only bad for recent collage graduates which is where the 14.7% comes from. The article poorly explains that but if you look at the source it breaks it down. Experienced collage graduate unemployment rate dropped to 4.4% for IS category. Graduate degree holder was 5.4%.

Snow.bros

This song is known to many South African, population has everything to with it.

tpatt100

Yeah recent college graduates have it bad right now because the natural cycle is way off due to the economy. People are delaying retirement, some people are not changing jobs like usual, etc so the upwards and out groups of people are not moving like they should.

I tried explaining to somebody online who doesn't work in IT how IT isn't something you just "go to school" for, it is a field that attracts you to it naturally in one way or another. Those who go to college for it and wouldn't tinker with programming, hardware, networking, etc are going to be disappointed when they actually get into the field. This person said companies should be willing to train and I told her some jobs require an "analyst" mentality, the ability to think on your own and not be afraid to try and problem solve on your own.

Even now I find myself reading up on robotics because my son and I are doing a lot of Legos and my wife enjoys putting stuff together as well. If I was not a fan of tech I wouldn't start exploring blogs on robotics and trying to figure out how that works as a hobby but maybe a career.

WafflesAndRootbeer

IT degrees have had a high unemployment rate for years now. They just aren't worth the money and schools don't have programs that really teach you anything because it takes years to develop skills that IT workers need in today's environment with all the many different kinds of hardware and software out there. Heck, the school I went to kept trying to steer everyone who signed up in their IT program towards computer science degrees which require minimal investment on the part of schools despite the fact that CS degree holders are largely unemployed or not making good money unless they come from schools with exceptional pedigrees. I only got one after I had years of experience and I got it because it was listed as a job requirement by many employers around here. Otherwise, I would have told anyone who told me to get an IT degree to go fook themselves.

JockVSJock

This thread comes up time and time again.

However I'm against any 4 year public colleges in the United States trying to prepare people for IT work. In my case, I was told the sky was going to be the limit, however after getting my Masters, the only job I was qualified for was Help Desk.

Had I known this was going to be the case, I would have never gone to college. In addition, the coursework has not prepared me for advanced certs like the CCNA.

Finally, both Keith Barker and Jeremy Ciroara both put priority on certs/experience before a college degree.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqiCQAvtvfs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwDec-9OcWs

ukiltmybrutha

JockVSJock wrote: »

This thread comes up time and time again.

However I'm against any 4 year public colleges in the United States trying to prepare people for IT work. In my case, I was told the sky was going to be the limit, however after getting my Masters, the only job I was qualified for was Help Desk.

Had I known this was going to be the case, I would have never gone to college. In addition, the coursework has not prepared me for advanced certs like the CCNA.

Finally, both Keith Barker and Jeremy Ciroara both put priority on certs/experience before a college degree.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqiCQAvtvfs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JwDec-9OcWs

Well said, just don't let them devalue you. Don't believe people's negativity towards you. Simply allow it to push you further at a rate that makes them a distant memory.

N2IT

@ Jock Vs Jock - back in 95 I knew of two kids who decided to go the MCSE route instead of a conventional degree and they are doing very well. I joke with another high school / college friend about it all the time. He went the college route instead and those two guys make more than both of us lol. I job hop to much, but he doesn't he worked at SBC - AT&T for 14 years before spinning off to another company. No real point to be made here, I just find it amusing that I spent 50+ on a degree and those guys spent 3,500 on an MCSE then and have way more return from it. Something else I observed was that actuarial science, finance, accounting, and a few select others really give the student a leg up in the business world. They can hit the ground running with certain task where others just can't. But other than those types of graduates you don't see many degrees grabbing traction. Especially in IT.

JockVSJock

N2IT, the scam known as the public education system in the United States does not prepare students to figure out what they are good at or what they want to do for a career. I have confirmed this with teachers when I worked as a business analysis for a public school back in Omaha.

If you look at my sig, I reference a person by the name of John Taylor Gatto, a former teacher out of NYC, and he explains in his books, companies like Taco Bell, Wal Mart and Starbucks have unloaded their basic training needs on the public schools and they have done a fine job of it.

I agree with you that the higher ed does an ok job giving a student exposure with business ideas (accounting, finance, HR, etc.), however at the end of the day, that isn't my passion. And having that wide knowledge isn't giving me enough pay at the end of the day to put food on the table and keep the lights on.

N2IT wrote: »

@ Jock Vs Jock - back in 95 I knew of two kids who decided to go the MCSE route instead of a conventional degree and they are doing very well. I joke with another high school / college friend about it all the time. He went the college route instead and those two guys make more than both of us lol. I job hop to much, but he doesn't he worked at SBC - AT&T for 14 years before spinning off to another company. No real point to be made here, I just find it amusing that I spent 50+ on a degree and those guys spent 3,500 on an MCSE then and have way more return from it. Something else I observed was that actuarial science, finance, accounting, and a few select others really give the student a leg up in the business world. They can hit the ground running with certain task where others just can't. But other than those types of graduates you don't see many degrees grabbing traction. Especially in IT.

N2IT

I really like the approach of getting a mid level certification and really going vertical with that knowledge. Then transitioning into a company explaining your passion etc. Taking a leap of faith and applying that specific knowledge to that specific technology. This is not full proof, but I have seen it work.

zxshockaxz

I've said for a while that employers value experience of certs and certs over a degree. I figure that if you have all three, you're set.

bermovick

JockVSJock:

A quick comparison (for what it's worth). One of my friends has an MBA, and we both studied our CCNA & CCNP at about the same time. I got my CCNA first and was hired on to my previous employer over him; he got in the next position that opened up. We then raced and got our CCNP - a little competition really helped keep the focus on. He beat me by about a month but had already moved onto another job with a SIGNIFICANT pay increase. Since then he's changed jobs 2 more times with an increase in pay each time (in the past 2 years) and is now making about 30k more per year than I, despite us having mostly the same certifications (he has CCNA voice, I have CCNA security.). The only difference on a resume is that MBA of his -- whether it's the line that lists the degree, or the knowledge on how to cater to the business/HR side of things to get his resumes looked at or whatever, I think him having that gives him an enormous advantage.

TheProf

There's nothing worse then to do a degree in something you're not sure about. I've seen this happen to my friends more than once. People go to university thinking that's the right thing to do, because that's what high schools and colleges keep telling its students to do. At the end of the day, it all boils down to "what's your passion" and "what do you like to do". IT is the type of field that you really have to enjoy and work your way up, no matter what degree you have.

I am presently enrolled at a business school here in Canada with intention to finish a business degree, not an IT degree. Reason for that, is because most of the time to work in a position like systems or network administrator is all about experience and not a degree. I always see listings for job postings stating a university degree or experience in the field. With that said, I do have colleagues who have a masters degree and work in the same field as me, but at 26 and making six figures, I can tell you that for me lack of a degree was never an issue, my roles were always specialized and thus certifications along with experience really boosted my career quite quickly. It's also worth mentioning that I was just fortunate enough to be at the right place at the right time, I am no different from anyone else, I just saw the opportunities and I went for it.

To me, a university degree is definitely an asset if you're considering going into management. For those kinds of positions, you need to have business training and unlike IT, it's really hard to get a job as a Manager, Director, or VP without a degree, at least from what I've seen. Sure there are cases where people get hired and they do their EMBA which the company pays for, but that's not often.

One more thing I'd like to add... I see people comparing certifications to degrees, I have a colleague who was saying "I have a degree, why do I need a certification" to me, this individual couldn't be more wrong. Certifications and Degrees are two completely separate things, one is a specialization while the other is a generalization. We're not comparing apples to apples here and for positions that are specialized like systems administrators and network administrators and so on, certifications have a higher impact, it's obvious. That's why a lot of times people who are in the industry will say, for a tech job, experience plus certifications has more benefit than just having a degree, and I completely agree with that, why? because I am in the industry and I see this happening all the time.

People have to be aware when they decide to pursue a career in IT, they need do their homework and make the right choice. Sometimes its better to get the experience before pursuing a degree. That experience really opens up our eyes to the industry and we learn from that.

blueberries

It can't be worse than than architecture. So much for "going Gault."

kurosaki00

The first layer/entry level of IS is the one experiencing unemployment problems.
That's why is so hard to get that first job.

But after certain level of work, mid-senior on IS
Its all the opposite, there are thousands of positions in need.
Its a vicious cycle
there are many mid-senior career level jobs available
but is hard to get an entry job, thus hard to achieve mid-senior level
and goes on

vanquish23

ajs1976 wrote: »

Employers want experience. They have been burned by to many paper tigers. How many graduates get internships or have real world experience?

Makes me feel warm inside with 5 years in Networking and on CompTIA certs. I wonder how my self-study got me into a data center.

Moon Child

I figured this out years ago when I got my IT degree and later was working in IT. After I got hired in IT position I talked with my co-workers to get a feel for the IT industry. Some of them said they had been unable to find IT work for a few years and were doing jobs in other industries and now were thankful that after years of searching they finally were able to get back into the IT profession . One guy said he did truck driving for a while when he couldn't find IT work, he had been away from the industry for about 5 years and the last few months found work with the IT company I was working for. Another guy I worked with said before this he was working at a steel mill doing manual labor and it also had been several years since his last IT job. After talking with my co-workers it became very apparent it would be a smart idea to go back to school and get trained in a 2nd profession. I didn't feel confident putting all my eggs in one basket. So I went back to school ! I left that job to get a masters in Ed get my student teaching out of the way and become a licensed teacher, knowing I could always come back to IT if I wanted to. Shortly after I got my Masters in Education I landed a teaching job. I knew back then that IT wasn't what the TV ads on TV were advertising, get an IT degree from xyz college and get a good paying career. I decided while I was still young I could get trained in a 2nd profession and I could always do IT in the evenings as a 2nd job or in the summers when I wasn't working. Also IT seems the first businesses cut when it comes to budget. A local hospital in my area recently laid off 2/3 of their IT staff. A major newspaper in my area has laid off almost all of its IT staff. Someone I know saw the signs and got an new IT job before his job got cut at the newspaper.