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By Emily Wengert
Jobs in everything from videogame design to
information security have hit the big time with coursework
to match
Like many people in their 30s, Nicole Willick fondly
remembers playing Ms. Pacman while growing up. With a
handful of quarters from her dad clutched in her hand, she'd
head to the arcade to beat the latest games. Little did she
realize she was doing research, in a way, for her future
career as senior producer for the videogame company
Activision.
Nicole is forging new ground, both by working in a $28
billion videogame industry that has only been around since
the early '70s and as one of the field's first female
employees.
"When I started here in production, I think I was the only
woman," Nicole says.
But that's starting to change. Nicole just wrapped up
producing Madagascar, a game based on the children's film,
and, by chance, four out of five of the people producing the
game were women. Although there are still more men in
videogame creation, Nicole sees an increasing number of
women joining the company.
As videogames have taken hold (annual hardware and software
sales are worth more than what the movie industry makes in
the box office), video gaming majors have shown up in
schools around the country - everything from undergraduate
work or a master's certificate to a PhD.
Sometimes referred to as digital/interactive media, these
programs teach 3D imaging, interface design and motion
theory. But if you like to blaze new trails, videogame
design is only one field that's hot right now.
Project Management
Project management sounds so straightforward: a combination
of amazing organizational and people skills. Think you've
got what it takes?
Make sure you've also got confidence plus good negotiating,
political, and networking skills. Then there's also the
uncertainty: a project can last six months or six years
after which you may have to go hunting for new work.
"Project managers have to be hustlers, too. Good salespeople
and negotiators," says Robert Deemer, assistant professor of
operations at Regis University, a classroom and online
school based in Colorado. "You have to beg, borrow, and
steal people. They may be reluctant to become part of the
team."
Though project management has been around for four decades,
it has exploded in the last 10 years with the growth in
technology and companies pushing to put out new products,
Robert says.
"Working on space shuttles and rockets, I've had all kinds
of exciting things in my career," adds Robert, who worked
for 15 years at Lockheed Martin. "But I like to live on the
edge."
Don't think you've got the skills yet? There are certificate
programs in project management that generally focus on
managing resources and team leadership, while master's
degrees concentrate more in depth on how companies function.
Crime Scene Investigation
Watch out: Working in crime scene investigation is so new
that every job available in the field seems to have
different requirements to work there.
Thinking you want to collect crime scene samples the way
David Caruso's character does in CSI: Miami? In many
jurisdictions you have to be a cop, and sometimes you have
to be trained as a crime scene technician. But if the
science of the lab entices you (and courses like chemistry
and quantitative analysis), look for a bachelor's or
master's in forensic science.
"Even though one can develop a logical argument as to why
people doing a crime scene should have a scientific
background, the vast majority of jurisdictions lack the
requirement," says Peter DeForest, professor at the John Jay
College of Criminal Justice, New York City.
As technology has advanced in areas like finger printing,
blood splatter analysis, crime scene reconstruction and
ballistics, the demand for this career has increased
dramatically. Peter expects more standard rules will one day
apply to this burgeoning area of work, but until then, it's
best to check your local area for its hiring guidelines.
Electrical Engineering
Did you know that electrical engineering is number two of
the top 10 in-demand degrees, according to the National
Association of Colleges and Employers? That's why the
engineering schools at the University of Buffalo and the
State University of New York at Stony Brook and Binghamton
are creating the world's first fully online bachelor's
degree program in electrical engineering, scheduled to
launch fall 2006.
"This particular field was selected because it is one of the
largest engineering disciplines and because the program is
relatively easier to convert to an online program," explains
Charles R. Westgate, dean of the Thomas J. Watson School of
Engineering and Applied Science, Binghamton University,
State University of New York. In fact, electrical and
electronic engineering technicians make up 42 percent of all
engineering technicians, with 204,000 people employed who
earn a median salary of $42,950.
In addition, explains Westgate, there are a substantial
number of potential students who have successfully completed
or can complete the associate's degree in engineering, who
are seeking an ABET-accredited bachelor's degree program
that fits their lifestyles. "They may have economic,
geographical, or employment constraints," says Westgate.
An educational program in electrical engineering will help
spark your career in which you'll design, develop, test, and
manufacture electrical and electronic equipment such as
communication equipment, radar, industrial and medical
measuring or control devices, navigational equipment, and
computers, says the BLS. Electrical and electronic
engineering technology also is applied to a wide variety of
systems such as communication and process controls. Classes
may include those in electric circuits, microprocessors, and
digital electronics technology.
As far as job potential, says Westgate, "data indicates
steady job growth until at least 2012 arising from newly
created positions and positions to replace those retiring."
Information Security
This intriguing, emerging field has much more to do than
protect against the damaging situations portrayed on those
identity theft commercials. Information security specialists
focus on assuring the correctness, reliability,
availability, safety, and security for all aspects of
information and information systems. Among the areas of
expertise within information security: cryptography (the
coding and decoding of data and messages); law
investigations, where professionals deal with computer crime
laws and regulations; rick response and recovery, focusing
on processes to identify, measure, and control loss; and
security architecture and models, whereby professionals
build the infrastructure to maintain data for a complex
organization.
Not only are the job responsibilities within information
security exciting and integral to today's changing
workforce, the demand is enormous. According to the
International Information Systems Security Certification
Consortium [(ISC)2], there is an increasingly vital role and
growing stature of information security professionals across
a multitude of industries. It showed that the need for new
professionals would nearly double worldwide from 2008 to 2.1
million people.
"Businesses recognize that information and information
security are critical to delivering their products and
services," says Rolf Moulton, CISSP-ISSMP, president and CEO
of (ISC)2.
And, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics'
Occupational Outlook Handbook 2005, employers are searching
for workers who are capable of implementing and maintaining
"hot" new technologies. Many organizations require
professionals hold at least a bachelor's degree in
information technology; a master's degree is often required
for a director position; a Ph.D. for those aspiring to
advanced developer status. Also imperative are
certifications, both vendor-specific like or Microsoft
Certified Systems Engineer: Security (MSCE), as well as
vendor-neutral, such as Certified Information Systems
Security Professionals (CISSP). Such certifications, says
Moulton, "empower professionals throughout their careers."
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