Yet the number of degree-seeking students may not be great enough to satisfy growing demand in the emerging sector.

Citing statistics from the U.S. Department of Education, Dice reported that the number of computer-related bachelor’s degrees conferred annually fell to 38,000 in 2008, compared with 60,000 in 2004. The company also said that schools should do more to recruit younger learners into computer science and information technology classes, and pointed to arguments for stronger math and science curriculums.

“The real problem happens at the K-12 level, where American kids do not graduate with either the interest or the capabilities to study the STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) topics,” Craig Bartlett, former CEO of Intel Corp., told Dice. “This is related to a number of factors, from poor teachers to low expectations to false rumors that all the STEM-related jobs are being off-shored.”

With states such as California and New York leading the way in tech-sector hiring, Iowa State University Professor Doug Jacobson said he agrees that local colleges need to place more emphasis on recruiting students and converting them into qualified job candidates.

Jacobson, who leads Iowa State’s department of electrical and computer engineering, said enrollments in the school’s computer science and information technology programs decreased to about 800 in the 2007-08 academic year, compared with approximately 1,400 in 2003-04. In 2010-11, enrollments rebounded to include nearly 1,200 degree-seeking students.

Six years ago, he said, Iowa State partnered with the Iowa Department of Economic Development and the Technology Association of Iowa to found IT-Adventures, a program dedicated to increasing interest in and awareness of information technology among high school students.

Using cyber defense, game-design programming and robotics as hooks, Jacobson said the program encourages students to explore information technology careers in a digital age where computers have become less than novel for most young learners.

“I still don’t think it’s sufficient for what’s coming down the road,” he said. “If you look at the general pool in Iowa, it is a little smaller than what you will find on the coast.”