One of the main issues identified in Colombian’s labor market is related to the limited information that both candidates and companies have in topics like vacant jobs, consumers’ needs, etc. Consequently, it has been difficult for candidates to realize what they should specialize in to cover these absences. In specific, this problem has affected IT companies directly, since Colombia’s context has not been adequate for candidates to develop the tools and skills they need to have, so that they can work in certain areas, such as, artificial intelligence (AI), data management, software architecture, among others, that are essential in the private sector. In this line of ideas, we identified a systematic absence of skilled labor for certain vacancies within IT companies. This can be considered as a challenge for firms since they are increasingly depending on these types of jobs to stay up to date with their clients and to broaden their market share. Therefore, this document ponders about the mains reasons behind the shortened supply of candidates for digital vacancies, considering whether higher education in the IT area is adjusted to the needs of companies in the labor market or if universities have programs that are not suitable with the profiles that companies are looking for. Additionally, the document tries to have a perspective on the role that companies have in reducing the barriers that exist to fill their digital vacancies. This document tries to answer the question: What are the differences in terms of abilities and skills between recently graduated students from IT baccalaureates and the needs of the companies from this business area? To answer the research question previously established, a brief literature revision regarding the main trends in the IT sector around the world, as well as the challenges that companies in this area must face to develop successfully in Colombia was done. After that, a survey was conducted for 12 companies on the IT sector and 6 chairs of IT programs in different universities across the country. This was done with the intention of understanding the common ground between companies that develop their businesses in this area. The survey also tried to identify the main obstacles that have been encountered when filling a digital vacant, as well as the challenges candidates must face due to the accelerated evolution of the labor market in recent years. Consecutively, a discussion of the main results was done, comparing with the literature revised. Finally, some conclusions were reached, about what to expect from the IT sector in Colombia and the skills the candidates must develop to reduce the low coverage that digital vacancies have had in Colombian labor market. To answer the question of this document, two surveys were done. The first one was focused on six different universities. It tried to understand the abilities that are part of formative process of IT students. The second survey was done for 12 different IT companies. It tried to get a perspective on the difficulties these companies face when finding the adequate people to cover their vacant jobs. The results show that for this case there is a difference, since universities have a positive image of the programs they offer and how these are useful to consolidate IT skills in their students. In contrast, results also show there are obstacles that companies must tackle to cover their vacancies, due to the lack of IT skills in recently graduated professionals. Also, there was a similar aspect identified in both surveys, showing that Artificial Intelligence is the least developed skill inside IT programs and the one that companies have the most trouble covering. With these results, an analysis was made about the differences that exist between the need of the IT sector and the contents and skills the students are receiving in their higher education.
