Information Technology Workers: Employment and Starting Salaries
(Correspondence, 05/12/98, GAO/HEHS-98-159R).
Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on recent
trends in information technology (IT) employment and starting salaries
for IT jobs, focusing on the: (1) unemployment rates for workers in IT
occupations; (2) number of workers employed in IT industries and
occupations; (3) number of degrees awarded in IT fields of study; and
(4) starting salaries offered bachelor's degree candidates in IT jobs.
GAO noted that: (1) unemployment rates for workers in IT occupations are
well below those for all workers; (2) at 1.3 percent in 1997, the rate
was less than one-third the rate for all workers; (3) employment in IT
industries has grown steadily, as has employment of workers in IT
occupations, which has nearly doubled in the last decade to about 1.9
million in 1997; (4) despite employment increases averaging 90,000 jobs
a year in IT occupations, the number of degrees awarded in IT fields of
study has remained fairly constant throughout the 1990s at about 48,000
annually--of which about 27,000 were bachelor's degrees; and (5) salary
offers for bachelor's degree candidates in IT fields averaged about
$37,500 in 1997--slightly higher than the salaries offered in 1989,
after adjusting for inflation, and above the salaries offered in the
early 1990s when starting salaries dipped to under $35,000.
--------------------------- Indexing Terms -----------------------------
REPORTNUM: HEHS-98-159R
TITLE: Information Technology Workers: Employment and Starting
Salaries
DATE: 05/12/98
SUBJECT: Unemployment rates
Information technology
Statistical data
Labor force
Economic analysis
Labor supply
Labor statistics
Education or training
Compensation
Wage surveys
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Cover
================================================================ COVER
Report to Congressional Requesters
May 1998
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY WORKERS -
EMPLOYMENT AND STARTING SALARIES
GAO/HEHS-98-159R
Information Technology Employment
(205372)
Abbreviations
=============================================================== ABBREV
BLS - Bureau of Labor Statistics
CES - Current Employment Statistics
CPS - Current Population Survey
IPEDS - Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System
IT - information technology
ITAA - Information Technology Association of America
NACE - National Association of Colleges and Employers
NCES - National Center for Education Statistics
SIC - Standard Industry Classification
Letter
=============================================================== LETTER
B-279910
May 12, 1998
The Honorable John D. Dingell
Ranking Minority Member
Committee on Commerce
House of Representatives
The Honorable George E. Brown, Jr.
Ranking Minority Member
Committee on Science
House of Representatives
Subject: Information Technology Workers: Employment and Starting
Salaries
Industry reports and various newspaper and magazine articles predict
that severe shortages of information technology (IT) workers could
have a crippling effect on the growth of the economy. In conjunction
with cosponsoring a convocation on the supply of IT workers, the U.S.
Department of Commerce prepared a report intended to bring attention
to the issue and to encourage stakeholders to examine the potential
for shortages and to take the necessary steps to ensure an adequate
supply of IT workers. That report, issued September 29, 1997, is
titled America's New Deficit: The Shortage of Information Technology
Workers.\1 Our evaluation of the report found that, although the
title implied that the Department of Commerce found a shortage of IT
workers, data and analysis contained in the report did not support
that conclusion.\2 In fact, the report concludes, and we agree, that
more information and data are needed to characterize the IT labor
market.
To better understand IT labor market conditions, you asked that we
provide you with information on recent trends in IT employment and
starting salaries for IT jobs. Specifically, you asked us to
determine (1) the unemployment rates for workers in IT occupations,
(2) the number of workers employed in IT industries and occupations,
(3) the number of degrees awarded in IT fields of study, and (4) the
starting salaries offered bachelor's degree candidates in IT jobs.
To answer these questions, we gathered information from three
sources. Information on unemployment rates for IT workers and
numbers of workers employed in IT occupations came from the Current
Population Survey (CPS) of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The
number of workers employed by IT companies comes from the Current
Employment Statistics (CES) Survey and is compiled by BLS from
payroll records reported monthly. Information on the number and
types of IT degrees conferred came from the Integrated Postsecondary
Education Data System (IPEDS) of the National Center for Education
Statistics (NCES). Information on the salaries offered to bachelor's
degree candidates was provided by the National Association of
Colleges and Employers (NACE). Although we did not independently
verify the data, data from these sources are widely used and
represent the best data available. Our data sources are described in
more detail in enclosure I. We performed our work in April 1998 in
accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards.
In summary, unemployment rates for workers in IT occupations are well
below those for all workers. At 1.3 percent in 1997, the rate was
less than one-third the rate for all workers. Employment in IT
industries has grown steadily, as has employment of workers in IT
occupations, which has nearly doubled in the last decade to about 1.9
million in 1997. Despite employment increases averaging 90,000 jobs
a year in IT occupations, the number of degrees awarded in IT fields
of study has remained fairly constant throughout the 1990s at about
48,000 annually--of which about 27,000 were bachelor's degrees.
Salary offers for bachelor's degree candidates in IT fields averaged
about $37,500 in 1997--slightly higher than the salaries offered in
1989, after adjusting for inflation, and above the salaries offered
in the early 1990s, when starting salaries dipped to under $35,000.
--------------------
\1 Washington, D.C.: Department of Commerce, Office of Technology
Policy.
\2 Information Technology: Assessment of the Department of
Commerce's Report on Workforce Demand and Supply (GAO/HEHS-98-106R,
Mar. 20, 1998).
BACKGROUND
------------------------------------------------------------ Letter :1
Public attention became focused on issues relating to the IT labor
market with the publication of a report by the Information Technology
Association of America (ITAA) entitled Help Wanted: The IT Workforce
Gap at the Dawn of a New Century in February 1997.\3 Responding to
this report, the National Economic Council and the Departments of
Commerce, Education, and Labor began to discuss the workforce
requirements of the IT sector. The Department of Commerce's Office
of Technology Policy was assigned the lead federal role in exploring
the IT worker issue. The mission of the Office of Technology Policy
is to work in partnership with the private sector to develop and
advocate national policies that maximize technology's contribution to
U.S. economic growth, the creation of high-wage jobs, and
improvements in our quality of life. The Department of Commerce's
report, America's New Deficit: The Shortage of Information
Technology Workers, examined the potential for shortages of IT
workers.
BLS estimates, on the basis of surveys conducted for the Occupational
Employment Statistics program and the CPS, that between 1996 and 2006
the United States will require about 1.3 million additional IT
workers as a result of job growth and the replacement of workers who
leave the field. Although there is no single, universally accepted
definition of the occupations that should be designated as IT
occupations, we used the occupations for which BLS collects
data--computer programmers, systems analysts, computer scientists,
and computer engineers\4 --and the widely used IT industry
definition--Standard Industry Classification (SIC) 737, computer and
data processing services.\5
--------------------
\3 Arlington, Va.: ITAA.
\4 BLS descriptions of these occupations follow: (1) computer
programmers write and maintain the detailed instructions, called
"programs" or "software," that list in logical order the steps that
computers must execute to perform their functions; (2) systems
analysts use their knowledge and skills in a problem-solving
capacity, implementing the means for computer technology to meet the
individual needs of an organization; (3) computer scientists
generally design computers and conduct research to improve their
design or use and develop and adapt principles for applying computers
to new uses; and (4) computer engineers work with the hardware and
software aspects of systems design and development.
\5 BLS describes this industry as providing everything related to
commercial computer use, from renting and repairing personal
computers to designing or installing an entire system; from
developing packaged software to writing customized programs; from
integrating and reengineering systems to networking and data
processing; from managing data bases to operating an entire computer
facility.
UNEMPLOYMENT RATES FOR IT
WORKERS
------------------------------------------------------------ Letter :2
Unemployment rates for IT workers are well below the national average
for all workers,\6 but changes in these rates closely followed the
movements of annual average unemployment rates for all workers from
1987 through 1997.\7 The unemployment rate for IT workers generally
increased in the late 1980s, peaking at 3 percent in 1991 and falling
to 1.3 percent in 1997. Unemployment for all workers was 2 to 3
times greater than for IT workers, reaching 7.2 percent in 1992 and
falling to 4.7 percent in 1997. (See fig. 1.)
Figure 1: Unemployment Rates
for Workers in IT and All
Occupations, 1987-97
(See figure in printed
edition.)
Source: CPS annual average data.
A similar pattern holds for the unemployment rates of the IT
occupations--computer programmers and the occupational group of
systems analysts, computer scientists, and computer engineers.\8 The
unemployment rates of these occupations follow the general movement
of the national average--increasing in the 1980s and then falling to
a 1997 rate lower than the corresponding 1987 rate. Unemployment
rates for systems analysts, computer scientists, and computer
engineers nearly doubled, from 1.6 percent in 1987 to 3.1 percent in
1993, but dropped to 1.1 percent by 1997. Unemployment rates for
computer programmers were slightly higher at times, increasing from
2.6 percent in 1987 to 3.5 percent in 1991 and falling to 1.6 percent
by 1997. (See fig. 2.)
Figure 2: Unemployment Rates
for Workers in IT Occupations,
1987-97
(See figure in printed
edition.)
Source: CPS annual average data.
--------------------
\6 The unemployment rates for professional specialty occupations are
also well below the national average for all workers and follow a
pattern similar to those for IT occupations. See encl. II.
\7 Unemployment rates are presented for wage and salary workers.
Detailed data tables are presented in encl. II.
\8 Unemployment rates and employment levels reported for the
occupational categories systems analyst, computer scientist, and
computer engineer are collected and reported as a group by BLS,
unlike computer programmers, whose unemployment rates and employment
levels BLS reports separately.
IT EMPLOYMENT
------------------------------------------------------------ Letter :3
IT-related employment includes workers employed by IT companies (the
IT industry) and workers employed in IT occupations. We present
information on IT-related employment in two ways. First, we present
information on the number of workers employed in the IT industry,
whether in IT occupations or in other jobs.\9 Second, we present
information on the number of workers employed in IT occupations
whether in the IT industry or in other industries.
The number of workers employed in the IT industry grew steadily from
1987 to 1997. Total employment in the IT industry more than doubled
from 628,600 in 1987 to 1.34 million in 1997. (See fig. 3.)
Figure 3: Employment in IT
Industries and Occupations,
1987-97
(See figure in printed
edition.)
Source: CPS annual average data and CES data.
Similarly, the number of workers employed in IT occupations nearly
doubled from 1987 to 1997, when it reached 1.9 million. Employment
in IT occupations grew by nearly 90,000 jobs annually from 1987 to
1997.\10 Most of the job growth in IT occupations has been for the
occupational categories of systems analyst, computer scientist, and
computer engineer. The employment of this group of occupations
increased from 447,000 in 1987 to 1.2 million in 1997. The number of
computer programmers has changed less drastically, increasing from
527,000 in 1987 to 626,000 in 1997. Although fewer workers were
employed as systems analysts, computer scientists, and computer
engineers than as computer programmers in 1987, these occupations
outnumbered computer programmers by a ratio of 2 to 1 in 1997. (See
fig. 4.)
Figure 4: Employment in IT
Occupations, 1987-97
(See figure in printed
edition.)
Source: CPS annual average data.
--------------------
\9 We use the IT industry to refer to companies in SIC 737, computer
and data processing services, a widely used definition for the IT
industry. Industry employment is reported for wage and salary
workers.
\10 BLS forecasts continued growth in IT occupations, projecting an
annual average of 113,000 new jobs in IT occupations between 1996 and
2006.
DEGREES IN IT FIELDS OF STUDY
------------------------------------------------------------ Letter :4
The number of degrees awarded in the IT fields of study fell during
the late 1980s and remained level or increased slowly in the 1990s.
Most of the decline in IT degrees awarded can be attributed to the
decline in bachelor's degrees from 41,610 in 1987 to 27,136 in 1991,
remaining at roughly that level throughout the 1990s. The number of
associate's, master's, and doctoral degrees awarded in IT fields
increased slowly over the last 10 years, from a combined total of
18,722 degrees awarded in 1987 to a total of 21,601 degrees awarded
in 1996. (See fig. 5.)
Figure 5: Degrees Awarded in
IT Fields of Study, 1987-96
(See figure in printed
edition.)
Source: IPEDS data.
SALARY OFFERS IN IT FIELDS
------------------------------------------------------------ Letter :5
We present information on starting salaries for bachelor's degree
candidates in two ways. First, we present information on salaries
offered to degree candidates majoring in IT fields of study. This
includes bachelor's degrees in computer science, computer
programming, information sciences, systems analysis, and computer
engineering. Not all starting salaries offered to degree candidates
majoring in IT fields are for employment in IT occupations. Second,
we present information on salaries offered to degree candidates for
employment in IT occupations. These occupations include computer
programming, information systems, systems analysis and design,
software design and development engineering, and hardware design and
development engineering. Not all starting salaries offered to degree
candidates for employment in IT occupations are for degree candidates
majoring in IT fields.
Generally, salaries offered to degree candidates majoring in IT
fields of study decreased in real terms (constant 1997 dollars) from
1989 to 1994 and then increased by 1997 to a level slightly above the
1989 average (see fig. 6). Salary offers to IT majors decreased
from $37,000 in 1989 to $35,000 in 1994 and increased to $37,500 by
1997.\11
Figure 6: Salary Offers to
Bachelor's Degree Candidates in
IT-Related Fields, 1989-97
(See figure in printed
edition.)
Note: Salaries are expressed in constant 1997 dollars.
Source: NACE data.
Among students majoring in IT fields of study there were clear
distinctions as to which majors received higher starting salary
offers. Computer engineering students received the highest salary
offers--over $40,000 in 1997. The lowest average salaries among IT
majors were offered to students majoring in computer programming and
information sciences--roughly $35,600 in 1997.\12
Computer sciences majors received salary offers consistently between
those of computer engineers and programmers--about $37,200 in 1997.
(See fig. 7.)
Figure 7: Salary Offers to
Bachelor's Degree Candidates
for Selected IT Fields of
Study, 1989-97
(See figure in printed
edition.)
Note: Salaries are expressed in constant 1997 dollars.
Source: NACE data.
Salaries offered to bachelor's degree candidates for employment in IT
occupations, regardless of major, decreased in real terms (constant
1997 dollars) from 1989 to 1994, increasing in 1997 to a level
slightly above the 1989 average. Offers for IT jobs to recent
graduates, regardless of their field of study, decreased from $37,000
in 1989 to $34,100 in 1994 and increased to $37,200 by 1997.\13
Regardless of major, graduates with computer engineering job offers
received the highest IT salary offers--over $40,000 in 1997. (See
fig. 8.)
Figure 8: Salary Offers to
Bachelor's Degree Candidates
for Selected IT Occupations,
1989-97
(See figure in printed
edition.)
Notes: "Computer sciences" combines salary offers for jobs in
computer programming, information systems, and systems analysis and
design. "Computer engineering" combines salary offers for jobs in
design and development for both hardware and software.
Salaries are expressed in constant 1997 dollars.
Source: NACE data.
--------------------
\11 The salaries offered to IT majors in fig. 6 represent an average
of the salary offers for bachelor's degree candidates in computer
science, computer programming, information sciences, systems
analysis, and computer engineering. The salary offers for each IT
field of study are presented in encl. II.
\12 The salary offers reported for computer programming and
information sciences represent an average of the salaries offered to
each major. The separate salary offers are reported in encl. II.
\13 The salaries offered to degree candidates for employment in IT
occupations reported in fig. 6 represent an average of the salaries
offered to degree candidates for employment in computer programming,
information systems, systems analysis and design, software design and
development engineering, and hardware design and development
engineering. Salaries for the separate fields are presented in encl.
II.
---------------------------------------------------------- Letter :5.1
As agreed with your offices, unless you publicly announce its
contents earlier, we plan no further distribution of this
correspondence until 7 days from its issue date. At that time, we
will send copies to the Chairmen, House Committees on Commerce and
Science. Copies will also be made available to others upon request.
If you have any questions about this correspondence, please contact
me at (202) 512-7014. Staff who made major contributions to this
work include Sigurd R. Nilsen, Assistant Director, and Gene
Kuehneman, Senior Economist.
Carlotta C. Joyner
Director, Education and
Employment Issues
Enclosures - 2
DATA SOURCES
=========================================================== Appendix I
We used data from three sources in this correspondence. Information
on unemployment rates and numbers of workers employed came from the
Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Information on the number and
types of degrees conferred came from the Integrated Postsecondary
Education Data System (IPEDS) of the National Center for Education
Statistics (NCES). Information on the salaries offered to bachelor's
degree candidates was provided by the National Association of
Colleges and Employers (NACE). Although we did not independently
verify the data, data from these sources are widely used and
represent the best data available. We discuss the data quality for
each source separately below.
BLS EMPLOYMENT DATA
------------------------------------------------------- Appendix I:0.1
Data on unemployment rates and employment by occupation were obtained
from BLS annual average tables for the Current Population Survey
(CPS), a program of personal interviews conducted monthly by the
Bureau of the Census for BLS. The CPS is a nationally representative
survey used officially for the purpose of computing unemployment
rates. The sample consists of about 50,000 households selected to
represent the U.S. population 16 years of age and older. Employment
numbers and unemployment rates for computer occupations are
calculated by BLS using the annual averages of monthly CPS.
Current Employment Statistics (CES) Survey data on employment for
information technologies (IT) industries come from payroll records
and are reported monthly to BLS and its cooperating state agencies by
nearly 400,000 establishments representing all industries except
agriculture. Self-employed people and others not on a regular
civilian payroll are not included. IT industries used throughout
this report are those in Standard Industrial Classification (SIC)
737, computer and data processing services.
IPEDS DEGREE DATA
------------------------------------------------------- Appendix I:0.2
NCES has established IPEDS as its core postsecondary data collection
program. IPEDS is a single comprehensive system that encompasses all
identified postsecondary educational institutions. IPEDS is designed
to produce national-, state-, and institution-level data for most
postsecondary institutions. NCES collects information on degrees
conferred through the IPEDS "Completions" survey. Data are collected
from approximately 11,000 postsecondary institutions on the numbers
of associate's, bachelor's, master's, and other formal degrees
awarded by field of study. In our report, IT fields of study include
computer engineering; computer and information sciences, general;
computer programming; data processing technology/technician;
information science and systems; computer systems analysis; and other
computer and information sciences.
NACE SALARY DATA
------------------------------------------------------- Appendix I:0.3
NACE is a national clearinghouse and publisher of information on the
career planning and employment of the college-educated workforce.
NACE members include human resources/staffing practitioners who hire
college graduates and career services practitioners at colleges and
universities nationwide. NACE reports salary offers for bachelor's
degree candidates separately by field of study and by occupation of
job offered. The salary information is compiled using reports from
the career planning and placement offices of colleges and
universities across the country.\14 NACE does not conduct a survey;
placement offices report information on salary offers to NACE on a
purely voluntary basis. The offers reported by NACE are described as
"a representative sample of actual job offers made to new college
graduates during the recruiting year and do not imply all job offers
made to all college graduates." Salaries reported do not include any
bonuses, fringe benefits, or overtime rates. The most widely used
source of such information, NACE is used by colleges, employers, and
government agencies.
For school years 1988-89 through 1996-97, NACE collected and reported
on salary offers to degree candidates studying computer engineering,
computer science, computer programming, information sciences and
systems, and systems analysis. For the same period, NACE also
collected and reported salary offers for the occupations software
design and development engineer, hardware design and development
engineer, computer programmer, information systems worker, and
systems analyst and designer. We report the salary information for
offers made during school years 1988-89 through 1996-97.
--------------------
\14 The number of participating placement offices varies from year to
year and ranged from 343 to 450 from 1989 to 1997.
DATA FOR FIGURES IN THIS
CORRESPONDENCE
========================================================== Appendix II
Table II.1
Unemployment Rates for Workers in IT and
Other Occupations, 1987-97
Professional
Workers in IT specialty
Year occupations occupations All workers
---------- -------------- -------------- --------------
1987 2.1% 2.1% 5.8%
1988 2.2 1.8 5.2
1989 1.4 1.8 5.0
1990 2.3 2.0 5.3
1991 3.0 2.5 6.6
1992 2.8 2.7 7.2
1993 2.9 2.7 6.6
1994 1.9 2.5 5.9
1995 1.9 2.5 5.4
1996 1.4 2.3 5.2
1997 1.3 2.1 4.7
----------------------------------------------------------
Source: CPS annual average data.
Table II.2
Figure 2--Unemployment Rates for Workers
in IT Occupations, 1987-97
Systems analysts,
computer scientists,
Year and computer engineers Computer programmers
---------- ---------------------- ----------------------
1987 1.6% 2.6%
1988 1.4 2.9
1989 1.3 1.6
1990 1.6 3.0
1991 2.6 3.5
1992 2.6 3.1
1993 3.1 2.7
1994 1.7 2.2
1995 1.9 1.8
1996 1.3 1.6
1997 1.1 1.6
----------------------------------------------------------
Source: CPS annual average data.
Table II.3
Figure 3--Employment in IT Industries
and Occupations, 1987-97
Year IT industries IT occupations
---------- ---------------------- ----------------------
1987 628,600 974,000
1988 673,300 1,049,000
1989 736,300 1,127,000
1990 771,900 1,199,000
1991 797,000 1,221,000
1992 835,500 1,243,000
1993 892,800 1,347,000
1994 958,600 1,465,000
1995 1,089,000 1,486,000
1996 1,207,900 1,654,000
1997 1,341,000\a 1,862,000
----------------------------------------------------------
\a Preliminary data.
Sources: CPS annual average data and CES data.
Table II.4
Figure 4--Employment in IT Occupations,
1987-97
Systems
analysts,
computer
scientists,
and computer Computer
Year engineers programmers IT occupations
---------- -------------- -------------- --------------
1987 447,000 527,000 974,000
1988 479,000 570,000 1,049,000
1989 566,000 561,000 1,127,000
1990 605,000 594,000 1,199,000
1991 675,000 546,000 1,221,000
1992 693,000 550,000 1,243,000
1993 769,000 578,000 1,347,000
1994 916,000 549,000 1,465,000
1995 933,000 553,000 1,486,000
1996 1,093,000 561,000 1,654,000
1997 1,236,000 626,000 1,862,000
----------------------------------------------------------
Source: CPS annual average data.
Table II.5
Figure 5--Degrees Awarded in IT Fields
of Study, 1987-96
Degree
----------------------------------------------
Associate'
Year s Bachelor's Master's Doctoral
---------- ---------- ---------- ---------- ----------
1987 9,101 41,610 9,190 431
1988 8,628 36,638 9,957 505
1989 7,900 32,652 10,237 625
1990 7,574 29,160 10,460 713
1991 7,677 27,136 10,168 787
1992 9,290 26,650 10,438 863
1993 9,196 26,338 11,118 928
1994 9,301 26,437 11,487 933
1995 9,152 26,749 11,366 1,024
1996 9,922\a 26,837\a 10,729\a 950\a
----------------------------------------------------------
\a Preliminary data.
Source: IPEDS data.
Table II.6
Figure 6--Salary Offers to Bachelor's
Degree Candidates in IT-Related Fields,
1989-97
IT majors (any IT occupations (any
Year occupation) major)
---------- ---------------------- ----------------------
1989 $37,070 $36,959
1990 36,641 36,396
1991 36,067 35,900
1992 35,371 35,119
1993 35,474 35,014
1994 34,952 34,127
1995 35,422 35,220
1996 36,164 36,119
1997 37,556 37,231
----------------------------------------------------------
Note: Salaries are expressed in constant 1997 dollars.
Source: NACE data.
Table II.7
Figure 7--Salary Offers to Bachelor's
Degree Candidates for Selected IT Fields
of Study, 1989-97
Computer
programming
and
Computer Computer information
Year sciences engineering sciences
---------- -------------- -------------- --------------
1989 $37,095 $39,146 $34,804
1990 36,599 38,670 35,080
1991 36,173 38,039 34,044
1992 34,918 37,577 33,936
1993 34,798 37,724 33,475
1994 34,421 36,651 33,640
1995 35,504 36,798 33,657
1996 36,030 38,390 34,619
1997 37,215 40,093 35,560
----------------------------------------------------------
Note: Salaries are expressed in constant 1997 dollars.
Source: NACE data.
Table II.8
Figure 8--Salary Offers to Bachelor's
Degree Candidates for Selected IT
Occupations, 1989-97
Year Computer sciences Computer engineering
---------- ---------------------- ----------------------
1989 $35,738 $39,706
1990 35,329 39,332
1991 34,739 39,300
1992 34,021 38,594
1993 33,486 38,781
1994 32,921 37,848
1995 33,917 38,504
1996 34,722 39,004
1997 35,771 40,087
----------------------------------------------------------
Note: Salaries are expressed in constant 1997 dollars.
Source: NACE data.
Table II.9
Salary Offers to Bachelor's Degree
Candidates by IT Field of Study, 1989-
97
Computer Informat Computer
Computer programmin ion Systems engineerin
Year sciences g sciences analysis g
---- -------- ---------- -------- -------- ----------
1989 $37,095 $36,651 $34,207 $37,320 $39,146
1990 36,599 34,658 35,159 37,523 38,670
1991 36,173 31,948 34,431 32,431 38,039
1992 34,918 35,332 33,164 34,220 37,577
1993 34,798 35,098 33,014 35,247 37,724
1994 34,421 33,930 33,546 35,975 36,651
1995 35,504 33,642 33,659 35,070 36,798
1996 36,030 33,293 34,788 35,874 38,390
1997 37,215 35,298 35,572 41,833 40,093
----------------------------------------------------------
Note: Salaries are expressed in constant 1997 dollars.
Source: NACE data.
Table II.10
Salary Offers to Bachelor's Degree
Candidates by IT Occupation, 1989-97
Software Hardware
Computer Informat design and design and
programm ion Systems developmen developmen
Year ing systems analysis t t
---- -------- -------- -------- ---------- ----------
1989 $35,671 $34,645 $36,657 $39,526 $39,980
1990 35,107 34,706 36,274 39,053 39,668
1991 33,894 35,046 35,873 38,519 40,223
1992 33,553 33,369 35,386 38,364 39,019
1993 32,813 33,574 34,606 38,016 39,813
1994 32,853 32,102 33,638 37,530 38,495
1995 33,784 33,708 34,352 38,068 39,448
1996 34,372 34,701 35,471 38,372 40,715
1997 35,597 35,196 36,597 39,630 41,081
----------------------------------------------------------
Note: Salaries are expressed in constant 1997 dollars.
Source: NACE data.
*** End of document. ***