Student Attitudes toward Information Systems Management as Major and Career Options

Abstract

In today's world of fast paced technology growth and the ability in incorporating information technology (I.T.) into business, students who desire careers in Information Systems Management (ISM) are declining. The decline is due to a number of causes, including outsourcing of jobs and recent lackluster economic activity. Information Systems Management is a major where students study how to analyze, design or prescribe and manage systems which integrate data a company creates into value-addedand usable information for use at the management level. Information Systems professionals' foci include but not limited to, managing databases for a company and ascertaining that data captured and maintained within the databases and systems provides integrity and value. Careers in Information Systems Management has high job security in today's marketplace and a higher than average salary. But, there is a stigma associated with those career options and it is preventing current generation of students from considering the major. There has been such a severe shortage of trained professionals within the field of Information Systems Management that companies have to continue to outsource because there are relatively few or no qualified individuals available domestically for hire. The main reasons for the decline are students' misperception of Information Systems Management as a field of study and that young college entrants are not educated aboutits career possibilities and future prospects in the field. Index Terms-Career, information systems, major.