Students Earn Internet And Website Development Degrees Through Online College Programs
Students working toward science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) degrees online or on campus might have promising employment opportunities ahead, Bureau of Labor information suggests. By obtaining a campus or online degree in specific engineering disciplines might lead to developing healthcare-related products and systems. A technology degree could help graduates land work designing and developing network systems.
STEM-related degrees, as they’re known, are available on campus and through distance learning programs. Government agencies and private organizations have been working to stimulate student interest in pursuing science, technology, engineering and math degrees. A focus has been on how the work to which STEM-related degrees can lead can help the United States in its position as a leader in technology and innovation. In 2007, Congress passed the “America Competes Act,” calling for expanded science, technology, engineering and math programs and new STEM programs from the Department of Energy, Department of Education and National Science Foundation.
Students can work towards engineering, science, math and technology degrees online, on campus or through a combination of online courses and courses in classroom settings. With campus or online degrees in hand, they might move into STEM-related careers. The Bureau of Labor provides information about STEM careers with anticipated growth, as well as the education level that might be best suited to them. This information from the Bureau of Labor demonstrates a few STEM careers where employment between 2008 and 2018 is expected to grow especially fast:
Geoscientists and Hydrologists: Within the science studies, students obtaining degrees to become geoscientists and hydrologists might enter careers where they search for natural resources such as ground water and petroleum. With environmentalists and scientists, geoscientists and hydrologists might also work to clean up contaminated waters and soils. The need for energy, environmental protection and responsible land and water management are expected to stimulate employment growth of about 18 percent. Those who obtain master’s degrees might particularly enjoy excellent employment opportunities.
Network Architects, Network Engineers, Web Administrators and Web Developers: If you’re reading this information, you have network architects and engineers and web developers and administrators to thank. Web developers create applications for the web, while web administrators – also known as webmasters – maintain websites. Network architects and engineers, on the other hand, establish, test and evaluate local area networks (LANs), wide area networks (WANs), Internet and intranet systems and more. Anticipated growth for these areas combined: 53 percent and, in addition to other occupations in computer network, systems and database administrator work, 286,000 new jobs.
Computer Software Engineers: Computer software engineers design and develop computer games, business applications and more. Employment growth in this field is anticipated to be 32 percent, with 295,000 new jobs created. Spurring the growth, in part: A growing demand for developing Internet, intranet and web applications and new products generated by rapidly evolving technologies.
Biomedical Engineers: These are the professionals who research, develop and evaluate products and systems such as automatic insulin injectors and MRIs (magnetic resonance imaging) systems. The number of biomedical engineering degrees has been growing, and many biomedical engineering positions require a graduate degree. This field is expected to see a 72 percent employment growth as a result, in part, of a demand for more sophisticated medical equipment and products.
There are several other STEM careers that students might consider when deciding on traditional or accredited degree online program pursuits. Many online college, university and technical school students are drawn to these instructional programs particularly because of their flexibility, where course work can be scheduled during non-working hours. In instances where STEM careers require a graduate level education, students who want work-related experience might find that online degree programs allow for the best of both worlds; time enough for their degree in science and their real life responsibilities.
