More Jobs Today there are more than 722,000 unfilled IT jobs in North America. The number is expected to climb to 850,000 by 2002. By 2008, the number of jobs in computer and data processing industry is expected to increase by 117%. Computer engineers, computer support specialists, systems analysts, database administrators and desktop publishing specialists are now the top five fastest growing occupations. The number of jobs for computer engineers and support specialists is predicted to more than double by 2008. Professional specialty occupations (which require an advanced degree) are projected to increase the fastest and to add the most jobs - 5.3 million. Occupations requiring an associate degree or more education will account for 40% of the total job growth from 1998 to 2008 according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. One third of all new positions during the next 12 months will be technical support jobs - with employers especially interested in workers with skills in troubleshooting, customer service, hardware and software installation and systems operation and maintenance. Recent high school graduates not enrolled in post-secondary education had a much higher rate of unemployment.- 18.4% As robotics and other technologies continue to replace manual on-line labor, job opportunities in manufacturing are expected to decrease.