Photo-Op: UAB Business School I-T Careers Summit High Schoolers Seek Recession-Proof Job

The UAB School of Business hosts the Information Systems (IS) Summit on Friday, Oct. 24, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. inside the business school at 1150 10th Ave. South. The focus of this year’s IS Summit is Information Technology (IT), specifically the various disciplines and career opportunities in the sector.

October 20, 2008

• UAB business promotes I-T jobs

• Recession-proof career track

• 150 students and parents to attend

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The UAB School of Business hosts the Information Systems (IS) Summit on Friday, Oct. 24, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. inside the business school at 1150 10th Ave. South.  The focus of this year's IS Summit is Information Technology (IT), specifically the various disciplines and career opportunities in the sector.

Some 150 Central Alabama high school students already participating in their schools' IT academies and their parents are scheduled to attend the summit.  Industry representatives from Southern Company, CTS, Mitchell-Wayne Technologies and a half dozen other local and national companies will be on hand to provide information on internships, desired skill sets and how to leverage academic success into career success. 

The event comes as an international economic slowdown threatens jobs across the globe, leaving many students in search of career tracks that will provide long-term stability.  IT is one of those, according to reports by CNNmoney.com and JobFox.com that place Information Technology careers among the 10 most recession proof jobs.  At the IS Summit with its focus on IT studies, students and parents will find out how to capitalize on this reliable career at one of the most critically sensitive economic times in U.S. history.

"IT is so recession proof because companies restrict their budgets and improve efficiency in a slowed economy, and IT is a major mechanism for improving efficiency" said Allen Johnston, Ph.D., assistant professor of Information Systems.  "So you can see that these jobs will always be in demand, and IT professionals should be in a pretty secure position."

Also scheduled for the 2008 UAB School of Business IS Summit is an IT Quiz Bowl pitting teams from attending high schools' IT academies against one another.  Dean of the School of Business David Klock, Ph.D., will provide the event's closing remarks.