soo,

was going to be graduating this spring with BS in Econ... and then running away from the job market by teaching english in korea for a year because my full ride ends this may.

anyways, read about a career as systems analyst a couple weeks ago and, as luck has it, my priority group just got cleared for vocational rehab so I can get the state to pay for my school. read about the career more and it seems to fit me well. I have been tech support for my friends and extended family since I was in middle school, I like to interact with people, the field isnt stale, yaddy yadda. MIS program at OU is ranked in top 20 and graduates normally have multiple job offers at 45-60k a year at graduation....just 3 more semesters for the additional degree too.

it is hard to get a good feel for the nature of the job reading the ooh and magazine articles though. anyone want to offer up a little perspective? what are some good marketable minors?

jacob

 

i think systems analyst would be good, especially if it's only 1.5 yrs and the state pays for it. if anything, do that first, then go teach english if you wanna take a break.

i would rather teach english than be in IT (if IT means helpdesk), however.

 

It doesn't matter how much you like to interact with people. If you're an IT professional, there is a high possibility that you will be dealing with technological retards all day and you will want to suicide.

 

just from seeing it first hand...IT jobs end up in India and China.... so far mine hasnt.....

 

that's why i left NASA (where i did system/database/web admin for years) and got an MBA to work in marketing/sales/product management, much more fun and if you're good, you can write your own paycheck pretty much anywhere you go, even in this economic downturn.

you may want to consider nursing (shortage for the next 25 years) - my friend is a lead RN and she writes her own schedule and pulls in about $170K/year with OT, but that's after a few years (if you haven't washed out). nursing has a lot of human interaction, good money, solid demand for the next few decades...

or pharmacist is another option.

take it from someone who worked in the IT field a decade before & during the bubble, it's not that great, and keeping up with the 10-year old wiz kids who can write multiple languages and pass their MCSE at 9, well, that's just hard as you get older.

 

this depends on your industry. a lot of financial stuff just can't be outsourced, due to regulations and security issues.

also many business are *finally* realizing that you get what you pay for. the rest will as well, eventually.

 

^ Tru dat.

It can't hurt to have additional qualifications but tech support and PC repair isn't all its cracked up to be. There is only so many times you can explain the "Any" key before you go postal.

IT is pretty much an office/clerical job, not really a profession. Your job is basically learning enough about something that you can make it work. You'll be assisting people do productive and meaningful work and not doing much of it yourself. You are a cost center, a glorified in-house photocopier repair man.

System Analyst hasn't got much to do with IT (the job class). A systems analyst designs and plans hardware and software systems to a set of business requirements. Depending on how big a shop you work at you may co-ordinate design of everything from gathering business requirements, modelling and software development or perhaps you'll work only on a small subsystem. For example, if you were to work as a systems analyst for say Boeing you might just do the system design for some part of the avionics or the in-flight entertainment system.

I suggest you investigate carefully what each of those career paths entail and offer. There is a golden rule I suggest you stick to always:

Never make long-term decisions to satisfy short-term goals.

Your choice will impact the next 30-40 years of your life. How much you'll make in the first year or two after graduation is meaningless over the long term. IT offers a high starting pay with few opportunities for advancement or personal development. Once you're an "IT guy" the closest you'll get to the executive suite is when you go in to fix your boss' broken keyboard.

 

you can makes some lateral jumps in IT, like programming- BA work - project management, but from a straight upwards perspective you speak the truth.

 

I shouldn't have listed "IT people" in the thread, I was ignorant as to the lack of overlap. Most people who graduate with the degree are employed as systems analysts upon graduation...good students @ ConocoPhillips, Chevron, Ernst & Young. (http://www.ou.edu/career/SalaryStati...ajors/MIS.html) And that is what I have read about and think I would like to do...

Ming - You are right, there are lots of plum careers in the medical field, but it is not what I want to do. My younger brother just wrapped up his associates in prosthetics and orthodics and is making 25 bucks an hour until his practitioner program starts in the fall.

??The occupational outlook handbook downplays the outsourcing line pretty hard. Straight from the horse's mouth; "Employment is expected to grow much faster than the average for all occupations. As a result of this rapid growth, job prospects should be very good."

Regardless, I was going to Korea as my application made its 1-2 year route through the Geospatial Intelligence Agency, and I am still applying even though I plan to stay in school.

Cthree - Advice taken.

 

speaking as an MIS major... the jobs at big4 consulting firms go to your 3.5-4.0 gpas with many extracurrics etc. don't count on those, and if you do get one, keep in mind the expectation is 50-70 hr weeks and 75% travel. i would expect you to make high 40s with an MIS major right now... if you make low 50s theres probably a catch.

to more practical advice... IT audit is where i'd look if i were you. MIS major + IT audit = big $ and you have a solid job as long as SOX compliance is a big deal for companies... which is likely to be a very long time.

just my 2cents.