IT Careers & Courses

No invention has transformed our world so comprehensively as the computer. It is only fifty years since the successful running of the world's first stored-program computer at Manchester University. From that pioneering work has flowed computer applications that touch all our lives every minute of every day. The scale of the achievement comes from the ability to integrate computer technology with communications technology which, together as Information Technology (IT), can deliver information almost instantaneously around the globe.

No other technology has advanced so fast. Every year new advances make possible information systems that were previously impractical. Building the vast systems that run on today's computers is an engineering activity that stands comparison with the greatest achievements of the nineteenth-century engineers who transformed that society. Modern information systems are now the most complex artifacts yet made by human beings.

 Information Systems professionals carry major responsibilities on their shoulders. That is why a career in information systems can be very rewarding. Information systems are at the heart of every developed society. They are essential to the standard of living we have all come to expect. Only properly trained professionals can ensure that the world has the information systems it needs to ensure the well-being of every citizen.

What is an IT professional
The term IT professional encompasses hundreds of specialists from the design and programming of computer systems, through testing, maintenance and support, training of users; and software or hardware sales. You might choose to work exclusively with software, hardware, or applications development.
 

The type of company you could be employed by is as varied as business itself, but the majority of positions are with blue chip companies in the financial services, hi-tech, telecoms and retail sectors.

Key Skills
At the moment, certain skills are in particular demand in the industry. The current top five are Windows NT, Oracle, C++, Unix and Visual Basic, so if you are skilled in these areas you will be even more attractive to employers. Furthermore the demand for Internet skills including Java, HTML and C++ has increased significantly over the past six months.