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Not everyone starts out with a clear vision of what they want to do. After all, trying to choose how to spend the rest of your life is a pretty scary prospect. For those who remain tenuously undecided, there is still hope.
IT professionals are in high demand these days. As Roger Norton, dean of the School of Computer Science and Mathematics at Marist College, explains,
There truly will be a major shortage, in terms of graduating students in areas of computers and technology, to meet the needs of the companies out there.
Here are just a few of the fairly convincing reasons why you may want to explore IT as a future career path:
1. There is Lots of Personal Freedom
Of course, office culture will vary from one company to the next; however, IT professionals are generally left to do their own thing. Many positions will allow IT pros to set their own hours, work remotely, pace their work as they choose and have control over their workspace. Having a high degree of personal freedom on the job is never a bad thing.
2. You Have Flexibility in Picking a Specialty
Let’s say you pick a professional area of expertise, but then later realize that it isn’t quite right for you. With many career paths, it may be too difficult to go back and try to change gears. With IT, it’s actually rather simple.
Many IT professionals will change their specialty at some point, from software developers to network administrators, or from database administrators to web developers and so forth. There are numerous different fields to choose from, so you are definitely not going to get bored any time soon.
3. You Get to Travel Frequently
The IT field is constantly changing. It’s your job to always learn and stay informed on new developments in the tech industry. As a result, you will likely be traveling fairly often in order to attend classes, conferences and industry shows. IT conferences happen constantly in all corners of the world, and having a job which involves traveling around the globe and learning new things is a serious perk.
4. The Money is Good
Although it may not be the first thing on your list of credentials for a prospective career path, it’s worth noting that IT jobs tend to pay pretty well. After all, being an IT professional means that you have a valuable set of skills which most people do not possess, but which pretty much all organizations rely upon in order to survive.
The actual salary will vary based the organization, but many companies are willing to pay pretty well for skilled IT professionals.
5. You Get to Help People
As mentioned above, IT professionals possess a set of skills which most people do not have. Working in IT, you will be able to help people on a daily basis, and many individuals in the field find this as one of the job’s most personally fulfilling prospects. After all, it is nice to be needed.
6. You Can Think Creatively
As an IT professional, you will be confronted with unusual problems pretty much constantly, and it will be your job to find creative solutions in order to overcome them. IT is a challenging field, but in a good way; you will be expected to employ creative problem solving as part of your regular skill set. As such, it’s an especially great career path for those who love puzzles and other activities which involve thinking outside the box.
In many ways, IT is just as much of an art as it is a science, and many companies have really started to treat it as such. As Global Risk Technologies’ CIO Monica Eaton-Cardone explains, “A lot of my job is cheerleading, and a lot of these guys on my team are like artists.”
7. You’ll Play with Cool Toys
If you are the kind of person who always wants to try out the new gadgets as soon as they become available, then IT could be the field for you. People in IT oftentimes get the newest tech products even before they hit the market. You will be able to test the latest operating systems, smartphones, tablets and other fun pieces before anyone else.
8. You’ll Gain Lots of Helpful Knowledge
Who needs to call tech support if you’ve got a background in IT?! You can be your own tech support! Being able to competently handle your own tech issues outside of work is one of the most frequently overlooked, though handy, benefits of pursuing a career in IT. Plus, your friends will love you if you can save them time and money by handling their tech questions.
Very few other fields offer such a high degree of independence, good pay, personal fulfillment and job security as IT. Considering all of these perks and benefits, there’s no reason not to at least think about the idea.