Southeast Minnesota is a health care and agricultural powerhouse. The region is home to the renowned Mayo Clinic and some of the world's most recognized food companies and brands.
Advanced manufacturing is especially strong here, with machinery, chemicals, and electronics among the top products.
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5/10/2023 9:00:00 AM
Amanda O'Connell
Southeast Minnesota offers promising opportunities for those interested in technology jobs. These occupations tend to have higher median wages than most other occupations in the region. While Computer & Mathematical jobs make up a relatively small portion of total job vacancies in Southeast Minnesota, they are expected to grow rapidly over the next decade with over 3,000 total openings anticipated from 2020 to 2030.
With the increasing demand for technology and the skills required to maintain and develop it, tech jobs have become some of the highest paying in the job market. In 2023, nearly 4,500 people were employed in Computer & Mathematical Occupations in Southeast Minnesota, with an annual median wage of $88,704. Many of these tech occupations have a median annual wage that is $40,000 or more higher than the median annual wage for all occupations in Southeast.
Computer User Support Specialists have the lowest median annual wage of the Computer & Mathematical occupations, at $63,467. However, that is still nearly $15,000 above the median annual wage of all occupations. On the other hand, almost all the other computer-related occupations have median annual wages above $75,000, including 11 that have wages above $100,000 (see Table 1.)
| Table 1. Employment and Wages for Computer & Mathematical Occupations in Southeast MN, 2023 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| SOC Code | Occupation Title | Employment | Annual Median Wage |
| 00-0000 | Total, All Occupations | 236,590 | $48,746 |
| 15-0000 | Computer & Mathematical Occupations | 4,280 | $88,704 |
| 11-3021 | Computer & Information Systems Managers | 350 | $132,419 |
| 15-1211 | Computer Systems Analysts | 520 | $105,434 |
| 15-1212 | Information Security Analysts | 90 | $99,197 |
| 15-1221 | Computer & Information Research Scientists* | N/A | $115,502* |
| 15-1231 | Computer Network Support Specialists | 430 | $73,341 |
| 15-1232 | Computer User Support Specialists | 700 | $63,467 |
| 15-1241 | Computer Network Architects | 70 | $104,831 |
| 15-1242 | Database Administrators | 70 | $101,452 |
| 15-1243 | Database Architects* | N/A | $126,506* |
| 15-1244 | Network & Computer Systems Administrators | 250 | $89,954 |
| 15-1251 | Computer Programmers | 100 | $91,040 |
| 15-1252 | Software Developers | 1,440 | $104,831 |
| 15-1253 | Software Quality Assurance Analysts & Testers | 100 | $104,397 |
| 15-1254 | Web Developers | 70 | $71,156 |
| 15-1255 | Web & Digital Interface Designers | 50 | $69,398 |
| 15-1299 | Computer Occupations, All Other | 170 | $74,297 |
| 15-2011 | Actuaries | 50 | $142,037 |
| 15-2031 | Operations Research Analysts | 60 | $68,910 |
| 15-2041 | Statisticians | N/A | $115,550 |
| 15-2051 | Data Scientists | 50 | $112,355 |
| *Denotes wage data for the state of Minnesota,
Source: DEED Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics |
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According to the DEED Job Vacancy Survey in the second quarter of 2022, there were 19,304 job openings across all occupations in Southeast Minnesota. Of these job vacancies, about 200 were for Computer & Mathematical occupations. Though a relatively low amount, these occupations tend to have higher median wages than the average for all occupations, indicating that they may be attractive career options for those with the necessary skills and training.
Among the Computer-related occupations in demand, Operations Research Analysts had the highest job vacancy rate at 16.4%, followed by Web Developers at 14.6% and Computer Systems Analysts at 12.7%. The median wage offer for these occupations ranged from $23.93 per hour for Computer User Support Specialists to $35.16 per hour for Computer Systems Analysts (see Table 2).
| Table 2. Computer and Mathematical Occupation Job Vacancies in Southeast MN, Qtr. 2 2022 | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SOC Code | Occupation | Number of Job Vacancies | Job Vacancy Rate | Part-Time | Requiring Post-Secondary Education | Requiring 1 Plus Years Experience | Requiring Certificate or License | Median Wage Offer |
| 15-0000 | Computer & Mathematical | 188 | 5.2% | 51% | 83% | 99% | 35% | $33.61 |
| 15-1200 | Computer Occupations | 165 | N/A | N/A | 83% | 100% | 34% | $33.70 |
| 15-1211 | Computer Systems Analysts | 57 | 12.7% | 63% | 92% | 98% | 31% | $35.16 |
| 15-1232 | Computer User Support Specialists | 23 | 3.8% | 18% | 68% | 100% | 15% | $23.93 |
| 15-1244 | Network & Systems Administrators | 10 | 3.6% | 10% | 80% | 100% | 51% | $28.82 |
| 15-1252 | Software Developers | 52 | 5.5% | 41% | 75% | 100% | 37% | $34.69 |
| 15-1254 | Web Developers | 7 | 14.6% | 86% | 86% | 100% | 14% | $33.01 |
| 15-2031 | Operations Research Analysts | 13 | 16.4% | 73% | 84% | 92% | 58% | $33.38 |
| Source: DEED Job Vacancy Survey, Qtr. 2 2022 | ||||||||
In addition to current demand, there is expected to be growth in Computer & Mathematical occupations in Southeast Minnesota from 2020-2030 with 3,470 total openings. Of these openings, 171 openings will result from the creation of new jobs, 976 will be from labor market exit openings, and 2,323 will be from transfer openings (see Table 3). Opportunity is springing up for technology workers in the region.
| Table 3. 2020-2030 Employment Projections – Computer and Mathematical Occupations, Southeast Minnesota | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SOC Code | Occupational Group | Estimated Employment 2020 | Projected Employment 2030 | Percent Change 2020-2030 | Numeric Change 2020-2030 | 2020-2030 Labor Market Exit Openings | 2020-2030 Occupational Transfer Openings | 2020-2030 Total Openings |
| 15-0000 | Computer & Mathematical Occs. | 4,594 | 4,765 | +3.7% | +171 | +976 | +2,323 | +3,470 |
| Source: DEED Employment Outlook | ||||||||
For more information about computer occupations in Southeast Minnesota, contact Amanda O'Connell at amanda.oconnell@state.mn.us.
Contact Amanda O'Connell, Labor Market Analyst, at amanda.oconnell@state.mn.us
