Computer Science Majors Entering the Workforce have Bright Futures (at Worthwhile)

It’s September, and about 19 million college students have recently begun their fall semester. An estimated 25-50% of those beginning college this year are currently undeclared, while around 75% of college students will change their major at least once before graduation. With that in mind, here’s another interesting tidbit:

About 162k job openings for software developers are projected each year on average, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. However, only about 65k people will join the workforce as new software developers in June 2023. The BLS also estimates that demand for jobs within the tech space will increase by about 25% from 2021 to 2031, which is remarkable when compared to the average growth rate for all occupations at just 5%. 

So, it’s a pretty good time to get started on a Computer Science degree. 

Across the US, workers that fall into the category of software developers, quality assurance analysts, and testers earn generally high salaries. All on its own, that’s a good enough reason for many to pursue this career path. Other factors like job security, and the creative and analytical nature of the work are also major draws. 

For some, like our newest engineer Dylan, the most important thing is the type of work he gets to touch:

“I just started my career as a software engineer, and I know this is something that I’ll want to do for the rest of my life. Using my skills to deliver programs and systems that impact people’s lives in major ways is incredibly rewarding.” – Dylan Faulk, engineer since 2022

Impacting lives in major ways is precisely the goal at Worthwhile. As of this publication date, about half of our staff belongs to the engineering team. Although everyone has a role to play in making the business function properly, the wide array of skills that our engineers bring to the table are the heart and soul of our organization. Their remarkable talents have led to multiple successful client stories, like HeartHelp and Aprendo. 

In order to keep this momentum going, Worthwhile has recently adopted a new apprenticeship program which helps bring inexperienced engineers into the workforce. We admit, it’s not a completely altruistic venture. While the new developers gain knowledge and experience with working on a programming team, Worthwhile gains the benefit of their new, fresh ideas and openness to learning new technologies to contribute valuable skills and assets to our clients’ projects. 

With the major discrepancy between the demand for software developers and the availability of engineers in the workforce, we’ve got to do all we can to make Worthwhile the ideal place to work (although we’d say winning the Best Places to Work in South Carolina award in 2022 means we’re firmly on the right path). The future of the software development career space is bright, and Worthwhile is prepared to meet the challenges of increased demand with enthusiasm. And, also, with a lot of caffeine. 

About Worthwhile Storyteller

We'll never tell you a lie, but we might tell you a success story that protects the intellectual property of our clients and partners. Our Worthwhile Storyteller is an amalgamation of all of our thoughts, experience, and expertise brought together to give you the facts about our relentless improvement in the software development space.