At
the moment in Australia, about 20% of all IT workers are women.
Why?
There
seem to be some myths about the IT industry that may discourage girls
and women to consider it as a real career option.
| The
Myths: |
The
Reality: |
|
| IT
is probably a boring job.
IT
workers are geeks and nerds who have no social skills.
Who
wants to sit in front of a computer all day?
You
need to be good at maths to do IT.
IT
is too technical for girls.
|
There
is a huge variety of jobs in IT.
There
is a lot of room for career progression and changing roles in
IT.
IT
workers can work anywhere in the world - including from home!
Work
in IT can be fun and challenging.
Some
IT workers spend only a small amount of time in front of computer
screens.
There
is good money and working conditions in IT - definitely NOT
boring.
|
|
The
point is, IT is a growing industry with lots of opportunities for
girls and women. You don't even have to work for an IT company. Every
kind of business now needs some kind of IT support to run well.
If
you have some or all of these skills - IT could be for you:
- creativity
- problem solving skills
- communication (people) skills
- organisational skills
- ability to work in a team
- responsibility
- analytical ability
- focus
- drive.
There
is a huge variety of IT jobs out there - here are just a few examples:
-
Computer Systems Analyst
-
IT Training Consultant
-
Computer Hardware Technician
-
Computer Animator
-
IT Sales Person
-
Manager
-
Webmaster
-
Computer Programmer.
For
a larger list of IT occupations check out IT
for Women website.
To
get one of these jobs in IT you need to do some study at school, TAFE
or University (see below). Paid traineeships are also available.
Some
IT companies have cadetships and graduate programs. Vacant IT positions
can be found on IT company websites, recruitment websites, job search
engines and the major newspapers (see Links).
Salaries
in IT vary just as the types of jobs vary. It all depends on your
qualifications and experience, and on the size of the business. Of
course starting salaries and graduate salaries are going to be less
than salaries for supervisors and managers. If you start up your own
IT business, you may make even more money.
Here
are some IT jobs and their yearly salary ranges (starting to managing)
as a brief example:
| Help
Desk Support |
$30
000 - $80 000 |
|
Graphic and Multimedia Designer |
$28
000 - $80 000 |
| Software
Developer |
$35
000 - $90 000 |
| Webmaster
|
$35
000 - $80 000 |
| Network
Administrator |
$28
000 - $100 000 |
If
you want to begin a career in Information Technology while you are
doing your HSC, think about enrolling in a part time school-based
Vocational Education and Training (VET) traineeship:
Certficate
II in Information Technology.
TAFE
NSW offers a range of IT courses and qualifications which can be studied
full-time or part-time. Check the TAFE
NSW online handbook for course details.
There
is also a women's only course called Work Wise Women offered by TAFE
NSW. It is the Information Technology Certificate IV (Client Services)
course offered in a women only and supportive environment. Check
the handbook for general details of the course. You'll need
to check with your local TAFE
NSW Institute to see if they are running the women only version
of the course.
Other
public and private education and training providers offer IT courses
as well.
Check
out the IT
Skills Hub for links to other training information.
Support
for Women and IT Associations
IT
Careers and Training Websites
IT
Job Searching Websites
