Features: Working in IT

Written by Luke Berté, Editor, Graduate Prospects, February 2013

The IT industry has been on the rise for many years, with every conceivable industry and business now employing people with IT skills in some capacity 

The world is organised and made more accessible every day through digital mediums. People receive information and access it through computers systems and digital interfaces more than ever before.This keeps the demand for qualified and skilled IT professionals high.

Graduates finishing university with degrees in any of the STEM subjects of Science, Technology, Engineering or Maths certainly fall into this bracket, and are well-trained for the most rewarding IT graduate schemes.

The exponential growth of the industry means that both SMEs as well as big multi-national businesses are in the market for talented IT workers, creating an industry that could grow faster than any other over the next decade. 

 

More IT graduates needed 

The European Commission recently announced that this growth could be threatened by a digital skills gap across Europe, as it seeks to collaborate with firms to ensure the sector continues to thrive.

EU vice president, Neelie Kroes described the IT sector as the 'new backbone of Europe's economy'.

Tech firms including the likes of Cisco, Nokia and SAP, and recruitment and staffing group Randstad, have already committed.

David Clarke, MBE, group chief executive officer at BCS (The Chartered Institute for IT)  reinforces these comments, 

'IT is the profession of the future. It already underpins most businesses and much of our society. Our reliance on and need for technology, will only continue to grow.

'Those who choose a career in IT will find themselves working in an interesting, dynamic and highly motivated environment.'

Getting started in the IT industry

So, the sector is moving forward and measures are being made to ensure it prospers and continues to produce highly-skilled graduates.

This is great news for graduates who have studied a particular branch of IT such as games development or computer animation, and have an idea of the type of work they would like to pursue.

But, for graduates who may be overwhelmed by the vast landscape of IT jobs, it is difficult to know what to apply for.

Computer science degrees offer a good grounding and provide a base knowledge for those wanting to enter into the industry. But there are numerous job roles and functions that fall under the umbrella of IT. How do you decide which one to pursue?

Where are the IT jobs?

• Graduate schemes will often give you a rounded experience of the different roles that an IT department in a large company are involved in.
• Finding work with smaller companies that are involved in niche areas of IT will give you a more detailed know-how of certain roles.
• Agencies that specialise in security or software design, for example will allow you to develop a specific skill-set that might take you further in the long-run.   

With that in mind, continuous personal development can be one of the most vital aspects of this industry. Maintaining a working knowledge of new technologies through training and conferences will keep you up-to-date with an ever-changing sector.

One of the many job titles in IT, web design is an area of work that will see you designing websites to not only look great, but to be functional and easy for the user.

Being proficient in web technologies such as HTML, CSS and Javascript will be necessary. Staying on top of where the industry is heading and having an awareness of internet marketing and SEO is also valuable.

Andy Hulme, works as a web designer at I-COM, a web design and online marketing agency. He offers some insight into the role

 

Ideally, you need a graphics, media or computing related degree and a set of decent work examples. Employers are mostly going to be interested in the work you’ve done since gaining a qualification, so having a good portfolio is hugely important.

There are tons of internet start-up companies and lots of established businesses looking at how they can get to grips with, and start utilising the web. So there are potentially lots of jobs out there. The hardest part is finding them.

Juniors start at around £18,000-£20,000, though obviously it depends on which area of the country you’re in. A job in London will pay higher than one in Manchester due to the higher living costs, and similarly a job in Manchester will pay higher than one in Preston. Seniors peak at around £50,000, after that you’re looking at creative/art director positions.