Careers in information technology (IT) are interesting, rewarding and offer opportunities in a wide range of sectors.
Still, the global IT industry has skills shortages in many specialisations, meaning a skills pipeline of young IT professionals is urgently needed for organisations to progress into the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
This was the stance taken by Admire Gwanzura, president of the Institute of Information Technology Professionals South Africa (IITPSA), while announcing the 2022 talent search aimed at helping to identify learners with computational thinking skills.
Gwanzura said many exciting fields, such as cyber security, cloud computing, robotics and artificial intelligence, could be explored.
The talent search, a challenge run by the IITPSA Computer Olympiad, uncovers learners’ computational skills that might otherwise have gone unnoticed. By employing the talent search at schools, teachers can help learners reveal their aptitude and encourage them to work towards rewarding careers in IT.
The programme can be undertaken online, or offline using pen and paper. It involves a series of puzzles tailored to age and grade, with five categories ranging from Gr. 4 elementary to Gr. 12 and elite level. After participating in this, those who have mastered a computer language can enter the programming olympiad, and those who know how to use spreadsheets, databases and a word processor the applications olympiad.
The talent search will run from 7 to 11 March, with learners writing a 45 minute paper at their schools. The top 50% of participants countrywide will be awarded gold, silver or bronze certificates.
To see examples of past pen and paper challenges, to practice online or to register, visit olympiad.org.za.
