Rising salaries for computing majors: Tech firms scour college campuses for talent – WSJ.com
July 30, 2012 at 2:54 am 1 comment
Is there really a shortage of computing professionals? Is it really in the industry’s best interests to bring more women into computing? On the Blog@CACM piece I wrote (before all the comments got wiped), one of the commentors told me that I’m wrong about any shortage of computing majors (and thus, industry’s need to recruit more women), and that I should instead learn from Norm Matloff, who argues that industry is faking the shortage. But a real indication of shortage is rising salaries.
Starting salaries at leading companies for average computer science grads from top schools range from $75,000 to $100,000, plus signing and relocation bonuses worth $5,000 to $15,000, according to venture capitalists and recruiters. New hires may also get small equity grants, with stars getting additional cash bonuses or larger grants worth as much as 1% of the company.
via Revenge of the Nerds: Tech Firms Scour College Campuses for Talent – WSJ.com.
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Alfred Thompson | August 3, 2012 at 10:55 pm
I would argue that even if there are enough people (and I am not so sure there are) in the field there is a shortage of the sort of diversity we need in the field. I believe that we need more women and more under represented minorities in the field. We need them for a number of reasons but first among them is that we need people with different views on how to do things. I have long believed that there is much we are doing wrong in the computing industries particularly in the area of HCI. Sure we are making improvements but we tend to have too many people writing what I call “programmers programs.” These would be programs that work the way most (single, white, male) programmers work and that is not a fit for everyone. Or even for a majority. We have programs that are too complex, that have too many steps, that just don’t work naturally. At Microsoft there is a new focus on NUI or natural user interfaces but even there we have to remember that the same things are not the same “natural” for everyone.