Andy Stone, Workforce Development Board Director for Santa Cruz County presented an overview of four technology career clusters in Santa Cruz County to the Santa Cruz County Office of Education’s ​​K-12 Computer Science and Information Technology Advisory Board on Thursday, September 16th.

Using data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, ONET online, as well as Jobseq.eqsuite.com, a website that aggregates local and national labor market data, Stone presented on wages, employment, and educational attainment for a group of Information and Computer Technology (ICT) career clusters: Desktop and IT Support, Networking, Cybersecurity, Video Game Design career.

The typical entry level education required for Computer User Support Specialists was some college or no degree and computer network support specialists typically require an Associate's degree. However, the data showed that 46.1% of Computer User Support Specialists and Computer Network Support Specialists in the field have a four year degree, 14.6% have a Master’s degree, and 13.7% have an associates degree. The forecasted annual growth for computer specialists is about 0.1% which is not high growth, but is stable especially given all the changes happening in the past year with COVID-19.

For Database and Network Administrators and Architects occupations, the average mean wage was $102,100. Entry level jobs require a Bachelor’s degree and had a starting salary of $62,800. 49.2% of those working as Database and Network Administrators and Architects had a four year degree, 18.5% had a masters, 14.7% had only some college education. The wage for an experienced worker in this field was $121,700.

Information Security Analyst occupation has a forecasted annual growth of 2.1% with an average mean wage of $108,100. ISA career field typically requires a Bachelor's degree for entry but has a starting salary of $67,700 and $128,300 for experienced roles. 

53.4% of Software and Web Developers, Programmers, and Testers had a Bachelor’s degree, and an astounding 31.5% had a Master’s degree. This particular cluster has a forecasted annual growth of 0.9% and average mean wage of $107,400.

When looking at data from Santa Cruz County 2021 State of the Workforce Report, ICT careers wages nearly surpass all other careers. The highest paid occupation aside from ICT was Aerospace engineers who at the senior level make around $53.32 and Engineers at entry level (machinists) made $23.77. ICT careers came in a close second with Computer User Support Specialists making $29.01 at entry level and senior level Computer and Software Quality Assurance Analysts and Testers had a median wage of $51.04.  

It is important to keep in mind that the data selected for the presentation depicts only a narrow slice of the careers in this field and is specific to solely Santa Cruz County. The numbers for these careers change dramatically from region to region in terms of the number of positions available and pay. However, unlike other career sectors, these career clusters fared well during the pandemic.

When asked about how these numbers look, Stone remarked, “Other occupations like hospitality were growing at high percentages prior to COVID-19 but were negatively impacted by COVID-19. The numbers [for these tech clusters] are not dramatic but they have been stable for the past 3 years...What I found interesting about the data is that the wages for some of these occupations all pay six figures because these skills are really in demand. The market isn’t flooded and there are employers ready to pay good wages…We have a small but stable tech sector in Santa Cruz County.”

Stone also noted that the wage data in the presentation may be helpful for local employers to compare existing wages and establish employee wages up to par with what other employers are paying. For those looking at entering a career or at a career change, the educational attainment information provides a realistic view of who they are up against and what education is required. All in all, the tech career field remains solid.