Fewer students pursue computer-related degrees

The colliding trends have some business leaders worried that they won't find enough workers needed to maintain expected growth.

"There's a bit of a perfect storm going on," said Katherine Spencer Lee, executive director of Robert Half Technology, a California-based consulting and staffing service. "I do think it's serious and I do think we need to start at the elementary school level and get students talking about math and science."

Although a dearth of tech workers has been a problem before, the situation is now more dire because of soaring demand by a wide range of businesses, from tech companies like Microsoft to insurance companies and local hospitals.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 854,000 professional IT jobs will be added between 2006 and 2016, an increase of about 24 percent. When replacement jobs are added in, total IT job openings in the 10-year period is estimated at 1.6 million.

The bureau estimates that one in 19 new jobs created in the 10-year period will be professional IT positions.

"The fact remains that technology permeates all businesses now," said Lou Gellos, a spokesman for Microsoft Corp. "All companies have that person down the hall to help with computer issues."

Amid the growing demand, the number of students entering computer sciences and computer engineering fields at major universities is dropping.

The Computing Research Association's annual survey of universities with Ph.D.-granting programs found a 20 percent drop this year in students completing bachelors degrees in professional IT fields, continuing a trend seen for several years.

Enrollment in undergraduate degree programs in computer sciences is more than 50 percent lower than it was five years ago, the group said. Between 2005-2006 and 2006-2007 the number of new students declaring computer sciences as a major fell 43 percent to 8,021.