Information technology, or IT as it is sometimes referred, is a section of engineering that focuses on the use of computers to collect, store and share information. IT specialists are the people who study and construct computer information systems and applications to manage the data. IT specialists can work anywhere from schools and government to nonprofit and for-profit organizations. They hold important roles in these organizations because they help keep sensitive data secure and shared data open.
The lowest degree that you can earn to become an IT specialist is the associate's in IT degree. This is a vocational skills program that you can enter into directly after high school. This degree will not necessarily lead to a high salary, but it will give you the basic skills in information technology that you need for an IT-centered job. It usually takes two years to obtain an associate's degree in IT, with typical courses being computer design, user interfaces and computer programming. If you have a strong background in math and computer skills, you would most likely do well in such a program.
If you decide to earn a bachelor's degree in IT, you would be completing four years of IT training along with general skills classes to round out a more general curriculum. The first two years of the degree program introduce you to the field of information technology, as well as ensure that you have the basic math and communication skills. You can enter this program directly from high school, but because it is so similar to what you learn in an associate's degree program, you can use the associate's degree to gain credit for and bypass the first two years of the bachelor's in IT degree program. The last two years of the bachelor's degree program delve into the complexities of creating and designing information systems. Typical courses are precalculus mathematics, project-based information systems, discrete structures, website database implementation, introduction to DHTML and JavaScript.
The master's degree in information technology program is one of two higher IT degrees in graduate school. This is a program for professionals who already know the fundamentals of information technology but want to further their knowledge in some specific area of IT. This degree is not for those who want to continue to have a general education in the field, but for those who have specific career goals in IT. The master's degree program lasts around two years, with courses including software entrepreneurship, principles of software engineering, computer architecture, information theory, advanced algorithms and programming language.
The highest degree in the field is a Ph.D. in IT. Getting a doctorate in IT is a time-consuming process because it is very researched focused. Students spend their time choosing and researching an area of IT and then completing a thesis in order to graduate. Some students even choose to work as research assistants helping professors with information technology research, or as teaching assistants teaching information technology related classes. Those who receive their doctorate are usually considered experts in IT.