Hello everyone,

Let me start off by introducing myself. I am currently a computer science major at a four year college on my way to getting a bachelors degree in computer science - information technology. I have been pretty much set on majoring in CS:IT for many years, but recently I have been having some doubts, and I have some questions that need answering. I figured that this would be a good place to ask, being as it is off-topic but should probably attract the opinions of at least a few IT professionals.

I am worried that by the time I graduate in 2008, the IT industry will be oversaturated with IT professionals, and there won't be enough jobs for everyone. That will lead to salary cuts, and unemployment. I am wondering if this will be the case, due to outsourcing and an overabundance of IT professionals, or if there will be enough new jobs being created that I need not worry about this.

Second, I am worried about what the industry is like in terms of the "speed" of technology. I am worried that what I learn in college will be almost completely obsolete by the time I graduate, and if I do manage to get a job, every year I will have to struggle to compete with new IT professionals who are more "current" than myself. I can already imagine that this is currently the case today, but it seems that technology is developing exponentially, so it will be even worse by the time I'm in the industry. Is this something I should worry about?

I guess that is really it for now. Hopefully some of you can offer some insight for me. I need to make a decision soon, because the deadline for chaning my major is quickly approaching. Thanks for any advice.

Are you looking into programming or sysadmin or consulting? I am also a csc major in a 4 year college. My field (as of now) is programming, with a minor in TSM (telecommunications system management). And I too have often worried about this same thing. Although I feel that being knowledgeable in Linux will greatly help me in my later careers.

I'm looking more along the lines of network administration or consulting. I love to program, but have ruled it out as a fulltime profession for various reasons.

Though I'm not an IT professional (I want to go back to school to get into that area), I don't feel that you will have a problem as far as keeping up with current trends in technology. Yes, technology changes rapidly, but the people using it don't. New things are coming out all the time, but implementation of them is still at a pace that people can keep up with. Whatever company you work for won't be jumping on every new widget, bell, or whistle that comes out. It wouldn't be cost effective. So I think you will be fine there. As for the state of the job market...I have no idea.

EXAMPLE: I work for a large company (used to be a government agency) that conducts background checks. We have both a web-base platform for this and some old software that is still Win98 based. Hell, we even have a DOS version of our software that some clients still cling to. So even if your company likes to stay on top of the tech game, their clients won't. Clients seem to be a lot more resistant to change. And most of the machines here run Win2K...only a few XP machines lying around. Not sure what our servers use (judging by all the issues we have with them, I'm going to guess some flavor of Windows, although I know we have some VAX systems as well...those never go down).

ever heard the expression build it and they will come. You're already on the right track by getting your degree. And as long as your school is a decent school teaching the latest technology (and you stay on top of technology yourself) you shouldnt fear your skills being outdated.