IT jobs

zap

I am doing a hons degree in comp sci and the moment jst finishing first year, what are the chances of me getting a job when I am finished or should I switch degrees?

pwd

when i started people with decent degrees walked into good jobs easily.
When I finished people with very good degrees generally got jobs in supermarkets and call centres.
can't tell what the market will be like in a few years.
If you like it and have the right sort of mind for it then stick with it.
If you think you've a better chance of understanding Chinese than object oriented programming languages then change degrees, because people with IT degrees and no ability devalue IT degrees in general.

InkPot

If there is something you implicitly enjoy more than computer science then you should be doing that instead, regardless of job prospects. There is more to life than work, but work takes up a significant chunk of your life. When it comes to spending 9-5 for the next 40 years doing something you enjoy overall compared to something you don't, then money doesn't even come into it!
Having said all that, I am a computer science graduate myself. I can tell you this: primary degrees aren't worth muck these days -- everyone has one (compared with 20 yrs ago). As far as computer science goes, in general, just getting a degree is not good enough. Rather you should:
a) definitely aim for a 2.1 or better
b) do a strong final year project in an area that is relevant to industry (i.e., has commercial relevance) at the time (you wont be able to tell this just yet, but you will by the time you choose your final year project)
c) get RELEVANT work experience during the summers!! Preferably all of them. Don't be picky.. work for peanuts if necessary.

If all of this sounds like hard work, well, you're right. BUT IF you're doing computer science because you enjoy the subject matter, then you really should be eager for it, rather than seeing it as a chore. Employers look at the above to weed out those who did computer science because the perceived financial benefits from those who are actually committed.



... then you should have no problem getting a job.

stevenmu

Like Inkpot said, a degree on it's own won't get you a good job. Really to get a good job these days you want a degree plus work experience, and a few industry qualifications help too. You should keep in mind that "IT", as you use it, can be a bit of a catch all. Some degrees are better suited for getting programming jobs (IMO Computer Science is one of these), others are better for IT support/installation etc jobs and others are aimed more at things like managing IT departments (MIS etc). You should decide which one of these areas you want to target and make sure you're doing the right course for it, and try to get the relevant work experience. Altough my experience doing IT support and installations has been very usefull in my current programming job.

Khannie

I'd agree with the others. I left in the crazy year of 2000. I had my job offer by early Februrary (i.e. four months before I'd left college). Two years later I was at a jobs fair in UL (for my company) and people who still hadn't gotten a job from the previous year were handing in CV's (lots of them). It's a bit of a rollercoaster industry...but you make hay while the sun shines.

The most important things are:

1) You like computers / coding
2) You're willing to work for a 2:1 in your final year
3) You're willing to do a decent final year project
4) 40 years in front of a computer doesn't sound too horrible to you