Firms may look to cut costs by shifting operations to foreign countries with lower prevailing wages and highly educated workers. Jobs in software engineering are less prone to being off shored than are jobs in other computer specialties, however, because software engineering requires innovation and intense research and development.
As stated in the introductory paragraph, American bachelors' in Computer Science generally rely on outdated methods and curricula. However, Computer Science graduates are very good at doing problem sets thanks to college experience in tackling well-defined specified problems, and breaking them down into small tasks. Nonetheless, even in this case, employers who face a large amount of such problems are likely to turn to programmers in a low-wage country due to their need to reduce costs especially in today's market. Moreover, top graduates from a standard Computer Science undergraduate program generally tend to go on to graduate school, and ultimately become professors themselves which reduces the quality of Computer Science undergraduates entering the job market.
Graduates generally have difficulty taking vague requests from a non-technical personal and turning them into concrete specifications that can actually be implemented in the context of a fixed budget and deadline. This problem arises due to the lack of communication that characterizes many Computer Science programs. Students generally communicate very little in the sense that they do not work together during classes which results in poor communication skills. From this perspective, Computer Science graduates encounter serious difficulties when writing or drafting a presentation, asking questions of users or customers, etc., problems which also appear due to the lack of experience handling real users' complaints and suggestions during their academic training. This aspect is also related to another shortcoming associated with this program of study. Graduates do not always...
This can also affect their performance because they are unable to communicate effectively with related departments.
There are a number of solutions to these problems but I think that Computer Science students should graduate with a portfolio of work and credentials to show future employers. This would make the recruitment process easier and more efficient for both employers and graduates as the latter would have concrete evidence to illustrate their skills and experience since grades are subjective and frequently inflated. Furthermore, this way the employer could acquire a clear understanding of the problems the graduate was faced with during college, and the methods he or she used to tackle and ultimately resolve them. Students would also benefit from working together more during classes. Currently, the lack of practical interaction among students along with the constant assistance of their professors does not enable them to develop problem solving skills. This is why working outside the computer science laboratory is extremely important, and a sine-qua-non condition for graduates to find and handle work in 'the real world.' Students who want to work as software engineers should also consider participating in internships which would enhance their employment opportunities by giving them the chance to gain experience to complement their theoretical knowledge. However, even in the absence of such internship opportunities, there are large computer companies looking to hire inexperience college graduates and offer them intensive training in company-based programs.
Sources
Statistics obtained from:
Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2008-09 Edition, Computer Software Engineers, on the Internet at (visited May 11, 2009).
