US college kids are abandoning computer-related degrees just as the industry is desperate to replace thousands of retiring baby boomers.

The Computing Research Association's annual survey of universities found a 20 per cent drop this year in students completing bachelors degrees in professional IT fields, continuing a trend seen for several years.

Enrolment in undergraduate degree programmes in computer sciences has been halved over the last five years.

Katherine Spencer Lee, executive director of Robert Half Technology, told AP that there is a serious problem and more needed to be done at elementary school level to make sure that students have enough maths and science expertise.
There have always been problems finding enough tech workers has been a problem before, the situation is now more dire because of increased demand for technology.

US Bureau of Labor Statistics show that 854,000 professional IT jobs will be added between 2006 and 2016, an increase of about 24 per cent. When replacement jobs are added in, total IT job openings in the next decade is estimated at 1.6 million. X

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AFP