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Chicago IT Consultant Explains Why Traditional Education Matters

Three of the most in-demand jobs for 2015 are related to technology. According to Crain's Chicago Business, they are: information security analyst, software developers, and computer and information research scientists.

CHI-Tech
(Photo Courtesy of Maharshi Dave)

But what may startle new tech enthusiasts and non-tech students is that one of the three may not require a formal degree. The only one that doesn't require a doctorate or a bachelor's degree is information security analysts, who are hired to keep hackers out of company computers. However, students with Ph.D.s and a stronghold on math tend to be attractive applicants, too.

When it comes to formal education, Maharshi Dave is a believer. His resume titles include IT consultant for True Consulting, as well as a programming analyst and lead system admin. Dave also holds a bachelor's of engineering in Information Technology from his studies in India and a master's degree in Information Technology and Management from Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT).

One of the IT professions on Crain's list requires knowing Apache Hadoop. Dave is already skilled at working with that operating system along with Aster-Data, Teradata, Tableau and SharePoint.

"When I was in my primary school, I was properly introduced to operating systems," said Dave.

Outside of enjoying education, he also sees the potential in being able to follow job trends inside of a school as opposed to trying to figure it out alone.

"Education helps [students] to brand themselves to its market and needs. [For example,] people who are more focused on apps instead of browsers can focus on [those classes]. If you're not [in formal] education, you will not be able to focus on those kinds of things."

Outside of IT mandatory courses, Dave recommends that IT students take on business management courses for two reasons, one of which is being able to communicate with the international market. The other is basic strategy.

"Management courses will help technical people to move further ahead in their careers. Entrepreneurs work on projects where we need to target correct markets and audiences, create competitive strategies, finance and revisits, support and organization, and team building."

When asked for his tips to aspiring IT professionals and those returning to school, he advised, "Be dynamic [and] more flexible. Keep learning and challenging. If you are in the tech industry, then definitely look for the leaders in your organization. Keep on networking."

Shamontiel L. Vaughn is a professional journalist who has work featured in AXS, Yahoo!, Chicago Defender and Chicago Tribune. She's been an Examiner since 2009 and currently writes about 10 categories on Examiner.com.

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