Gaps in programming education

Abstract

Significant changes are occurring in the US software job market that may require revised academic curricula for software engineers and computer science students at the university level. There has long been debate about whether academic training at the university level should be oriented toward the fundamental theories of software engineering and computer science or toward a more practical curriculum of immediate relevance to those job markets. By and large, the theoretical side seems to be dominant in the US (and in Europe). US academic institutions tend to lack courses in several topics required for professional software production. As a result, recent college graduates in any technical domain usually require mentoring and on-the-job training before they can be entrusted with significant assignments. Large corporations normally supplement gaps in academic training with extensive entry-level training for new software employees. But as employment in these companies declines, smaller companies hire a larger percentage of new graduates. Small companies seldom and usually cannot afford to offer entry-level training. Therefore, both graduates and employers would benefit if US universities and colleges better prepared graduates for typical software work experiences.< <ETX xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">&gt;</ETX>