As technology becomes an integral part of the operations of most businesses, the demand for individuals who have completed campus-based or online college degree programs in technical fields is expected to increase.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, nearly 50,000 jobs for computer and information systems managers will be created over the next eight years. Because employers of these professionals tend to prefer applicants who have masters degrees, individuals who wish to enter this fast-growing field may want to consider updating their educational qualifications.

Students who decide to pursue a graduate degree in a field such as computer science may be able to gain real-world experience while they are completing their curriculum. Many campus-based and online schools are now giving budding computer scientists the opportunity to participate in research initiatives.

For instance, a professor from a Texas-based school recently created a team of colleagues and students to collaborate on an embedded processors research project with Texas Instruments (TI). Using various grants from the electronics company, team members are working with design engineers to study embedded multicore processors, according to officials from TI.