IT Career Juice Blog

A breakdown of the best entry-level tech roles, including job descriptions, why it’s a good IT career for beginners, education requirements and salaries.

Amidst rapid growth and recent innovations in the tech sector, there's no better time than now to start an IT career path. The information technology industry offers a range of entry-level jobs for recent college graduates or working adults looking to change professions. However, with so many options available, figuring out where to start your search can be daunting. In this article, we'll explore the top five IT careers for beginners, highlighting the roles and responsibilities for each, why it’s a good fit for beginners, training and certification requirements, and entry-level salaries.

In no particular order, here are the best IT careers for beginners:

ITCareerFinder breaks down the pros and cons of majoring in computer science.

In our increasingly tech-driven world, computer science has emerged as a popular and promising undergraduate major. Aspiring CS professionals are drawn to the field for its exciting career opportunities, competitive salaries and broad applicability across industries. However, the pursuit of a computer science degree is not without challenges. From rigorous coursework to the fast-paced nature of the industry, there are several factors to consider before embarking on this academic journey. In this article, we will delve into the advantages and disadvantages of studying computer science, providing a comprehensive analysis to help prospective students make an informed decision about their education.

A guide to penetration testing certifications, including what they are, why they're valuable, and the best pen testing credentials for your cybersecurity career path.

This post will be updated annually with the top pen-testing certificates.

Penetration testing - a.k.a. “pentesting” - involves simulating attacks on networks and computer systems to identify vulnerabilities which can then be shored up by the cybersecurity team. Pen testing is a vital component of an organization’s information security strategy.

Pen testing certifications are professional credentials earned by IT security specialists who demonstrate a level of proficiency in this field. The leading pen-tester certificates are offered by various types of institutions, including cybersecurity industry associations, globally recognized certifying bodies, and technical training providers.

In this post, we will identify the best penetration testing certifications by experience level and specialization. For each certificate, we’ll highlight the key skills it covers, prerequisites, costs, benefits, training options, and more.

A quality college education isn't cheap - especially in a hot field like computer science - but deals abound if you know where to look. Here are some of our favorite affordable online CS degrees.

This article will be updated continually with the best cheap online computer science programs.

Some of today’s most lucrative IT careers are in fields like cloud computing, cyber security, software development, data analytics and artificial intelligence. While courses and certificates can help you get your foot in the door, the best jobs in these domains require at least a bachelor’s degree in computer science or a related field. This article will highlight some of the best online CS degrees in these fields that won’t break the bank.

With the proliferation of online learning, obtaining a computer science degree has never been easier or more affordable. According to the latest data from the Education Data Initiative, the average tuition price for an online bachelor’s program is a whopping $51,091 before financial aid and scholarships are applied. We analyzed the field of accredited comp-sci degrees under this price - most of which came in at a far lower cost - and selected the most relevant, high-quality and economical programs to compile this list of the cheapest online bachelor’s in computer science.

After a 2022 that saw massive layoffs in the high-tech workforce, 2023 is heralding more of the same.

In this article we'll identify which tech companies laid off the most workers, the reasons behind this ongoing spike in layoffs, and how you can boost your job security in a volatile IT workforce.

Layoffs data on this page will be updated continually. For up-to-the-minute layoff tracking, visit Layoffs.fyi - an aggregator of tech layoff announcements since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Which tech companies are laying off workers?

ITCareerFinder analyzes the latest data on tech salaries, employment, cost of living and quality of life to uncover the best cities for IT professionals to call home.

Many of the best computer jobs can now be done remotely, but plenty of tech roles still come with a commute. And even if you work from home, where you live shapes what you earn, what you spend and how much you enjoy life after hours. This study compares 74 U.S. metro areas with at least 10,000 computer and math jobs to find the best places to live in or relocate to as an IT professional.

To rank the best cities for tech jobs, we weighed what tech pros actually take home after local prices, how many tech jobs each metro offers and how concentrated they are, and quality of life, because after all, once the 9-to-5 is over you still have to live there.

Jump down to the bottom of the page for the ranking methodology and source list, or read on for this year's top 10 cities for IT professionals.

ITCareerFinder highlights some of the most popular and accomplished women in computer science.

Women account for only 19% of computer science graduates in the US, according to the latest data from the National Center of Education Statistics. This disparity is confirmed by an extensive study from the Allen Institute for AI which place the rate of male to female computer scientists at 4:1.

Despite representing a small percentage of the CS workforce, female computer scientists have made some revolutionary contributions to the field. These achievements are made doubly special because women have historically had far less access to education and employment.

This page will spotlight the great women of computer science and outline some of their key accomplishments.

Here are the 5 most famous female computer scientists:

ITCareerFinder breaks down some of the most sought-after jobs in the metaverse and the skills you need to level up in each position.

This page will be updated regularly with the latest and greatest metaverse career paths.

In October 2021, Facebook changed its name to Meta and announced plans to create 10,000 new high-skilled jobs in the European Union (EU) to help shape the metaverse.

It turns out that Facebook isn’t the only one betting heavily on the growth of the metaverse, over 160 companies are jumping in too.

So what is the metaverse and what types of jobs might it create?

Broadly speaking, the metaverse is a shared virtual world. In theory, people will be able to create an avatar and travel into this immersive virtual world to socialize, play games, work, create, shop, or even remotely attend a concert or sporting event by wearing virtual reality headsets.

Much like the transition to Web 2.0, mobile technologies, and the Internet of Things (IoT) devices, the metaverse is creating new IT and hybrid job opportunities, which require a combination of technical and non-technical skills.

To keep your career thriving in the metaverse, here’s a look at 6 roles that are in demand right now and poised to explode in the future.