IT professionals will always be seen as a little geeky, but will the nerds inherit the earth? Damn right! Anyone interested in getting into IT has a very exciting future ahead of them. Firstly, there’s a massive skills dearth in the area, and secondly there is money to be had. Lots of it. From Facebook and Google to all of the UK’s retailers, banks, hospitals… You name it, they need IT professionals to help guide them through the age of the computer. And if it doesn’t work out for you? Just turn it off and turn it back on again… 

What job?

To get into IT you – of course – need an IT or computing degree, so chances are you’re already pretty set on your career path and what you want to do jobs-wise. However, there are hundreds of specialisations within the IT industry and it’s important that you really hone in on what you want to do sooner rather than later, gaining as much experience as you can early-on.

Some of the jobs included in this field are:

• Support engineer
• Development programmer
• Webmaster
• Graphic designer
• IT trainer
• Consultant
• Software engineer
• New media
• SQL

And the variety can make this a very exciting industry to be a part of. 

"Home computers are being called upon to perform many new functions, including the consumption of homework formerly eaten by the dog."
Doug Larson

Of course, this list is by no means exhaustive; in fact, it’s only just the beginning of the story.

Do you have what it takes?

Anyone looking to get into IT should have a passion for all things computer. After all, depending on what you’re doing, you could be in for very long, frustrating days ahead fixing problems and coming up with solutions to a whole range of IT problems. If you’re looking to get into web design then you’ll need to have both sides of the coin: technical know-how AND creativity. The good thing is, you’ll be able to choose a job in IT that suits your own personality and skills. IT is the kind of industry where all you need is access to a computer, so work-life balance can be maintained and flexi-time is often an option. Bonus.

Oh the glamour

Two words: IT Crowd. Didn’t do much for the IT industry in terms of making it any cooler, eh? But it’s not all ‘turning it off and on again’. IT professionals have been the subject of many movies to roll out of Hollywood – hell, they’ve even been the heroes of the hour.

Top 5 IT movies you just HAVE to watch

• Hackers – IT is officially sexed up thanks to Angelina Jolie and some serious hacking
• The Social Network – watch this film. Watch it now
• Die Hard 4 – Bruce Willis runs around in a white vest while computer whizzes save the world from cyber terrorists
• Tron – coolest computer movie. Of. All. Time.
• War Games – probably the reason you became interested in IT in the first place

Warning: Chances are you won’t save the world or enter a computer game but hey, you will be an integral part of any company.

...But what is it REALLY like?

A career in IT really is what you make it and you can ignore any doubters as you only have to visit Google’s headquarters to see that yes, they are possibly the coolest company to work for ever.

"That’s what’s cool about working with computers. They don’t argue, they remember everything, and they don’t drink all your beer."
Paul Leary

You just have to be prepared to stay on top of the world of computing. This is possibly one of the fastest moving technologies there has ever been and you will be expected to stay constantly one step ahead of the game. And that can be tough.

Money, money, money

Perhaps unsurprisingly, IT is an industry with a great salary attached. From online editors and e-commerce managers to developers and programmers, any job that requires strong technology skills will have a better salary associated with it. As such, you can expect to be earning an average starting salary of £25,000.

Check out our IT jobs

Is an IT job for you? To find out more check out the jobs we have and our totaljobs salary checker to see how well the IT jobs market is performing at the moment. We also have internships and placements currently live on the site so you can start out on your career path right here.