Young Students & Tech

CompTIA's "Student Perspectives of Technology and Careers" finds that more than two-thirds of teenagers have some idea of the career path they would like to pursue. Half that group indicates some interest in working in technology, with boys (55%) more than girls (47%) considering a career in tech.

Still, misperceptions about working in tech persist among teens. This includes the feeling that a tech job requires good math and science skills; that the work is complicated and difficult; that you work alone on a computer; the work is boring; or is just for tech geeks.

CompTIA found that students who are interested in tech identify express interest in specific occupation categories similar to current job postings, including positions in software and application development, emerging technologies and cybersecurity.

A troubling indicator is that boys report receiving higher levels of encouragement to consider a tech career than girls. This encouragement gap is among the factors that contributes to lower rates of consideration for a career in technology among girls.

Sources:

• https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/teens-and-tech-comptia-report-explores-views-on-their-use-of-technology-career-options-and-the-future-of-work-301549365.html

• https://www.comptia.org/content/research/student-perspectives-of-technology-and-careers