Computing research may not top your list of concerns when searching for a junior programmer or multimedia specialist post. But the Computing Research Association (CRA), a group devoted to research in computing, has a mission -- and the resources -- to help just about anyone working in technology.

Best known among IT professionals for its Taulbee Survey of PhD-granting computer science programs, the CRA offers a variety of resources to improve the image of the computing industry and draw minorities and women to the field.

Andy Bernat, the CRA's executive director, says the group's mission focuses on two key areas:

• Working with Congress and federal agencies to fund computing research.
  
• Convincing students that computing is a vibrant, exciting field, and then helping them succeed in their academic careers and thereafter.

Unlike other broad-based computing organizations, the CRA's membership is composed of institutions, including academic departments, companies and other computing societies, rather than individuals. Virtually all universities that grant PhDs in computer science belong to the CRA. Other CRA members include Google, Hewlett-Packard, Intel, Microsoft and a who's who of leading computing institutions -- a sign of the importance of the CRA's mission.

Taulbee Survey

The Taulbee Survey is a key gauge of the popularity of computer science study, which has shown a steep decline since the dotcom boom years. New computer science majors in the fall of 2007 totaled 7,915, half the number in the fall of 2000, though recent surveys show the rate of decline is leveling off.

Why Choose Computing?

The decline in interest in computing -- attributed to overhyped expectations from the boom and concerns over offshoring -- can be frustrating for CRA members, Bernat says. They view computing as an exciting, creative field that's limited only by one's ability and imagination. "In computing, you get to make up what you're doing and create stuff," he says. "Why don't students see it this way?"

The CRA is working to improve the image of computing as a field with endless possibilities. "It may look like we've come a long way, but we've just begun to tap [the field's potential]," Bernat says. "For people who like to explore ideas, there is no better field than computing."

Though the group has at times viewed undergraduate education as outside its core mission, the organization now has a number of initiatives, including mentoring and scholarships, to draw the best and the brightest to computing. "The fact is, the enrollments are in such a state [that] we don't end up with graduate students if we don't have undergraduate students," Bernat says.

Diversity in Computing

Along with its efforts to draw more students to computing, the CRA is also working to ensure the field diversifies through its Committee on the Status of Women in Computing Research and its Coalition to Diversify Computing, a joint organization of the CRA, the Association for Computing Machinery and the IEEE Computer Society.

Recent Taulbee data indicates that only 11.8 percent of computer science and computer engineering degrees went to women. National Science Foundation data indicates that less than 20 percent of computer engineering degrees went to underrepresented minorities, according to Carla M. Romero, the CRA's director of programs.

"Recruitment of women and minority candidates into computing has been and continues to be a significant challenge," Romero says. "The numbers show that attracting and retaining women and underrepresented groups into computing is dismal."

Useful Resources and Programs

Through its Web site, the CRA provides a bounty of resources for anyone interested in computing -- especially those interested in a research career or academia. The programs and resources include:

• A CRA database that lets you rank PhD programs based on 20 characteristics.
  
• A report -- "Why Choose a Ph.D." -- which details reasons to consider a doctoral program.
• Mentoring programs and workshops that connect students considering careers in academia and research with expert advice.
  
• CRA conferences on "grand research challenges," which tackle issues such as computer architecture and information security.
  
• A blog to keep members and others up-to-date on computer research.