The BearingPoint Inc. software development center slated to open in Hattiesburg in the spring will be the first such center the global company has opened in the United States.

University of Southern Mississippi officials who worked in recruiting the company to Hattiesburg say the company's move may be part of a trend of software development companies moving jobs back to American soil and they have plans for Southern Miss to capitalize on it.

Based in McLean, Va., the business consulting company will create 275 new software development jobs during the next three years.

Adel Ali, chairman of the department of computer science, met last year with a consultant from BearingPoint. Ali said outsourcing software development jobs overseas will decrease because of security concerns that exist in countries such as India or Pakistan as well as governmental pressure on companies to stop sending jobs overseas. "Information technology after Sept. 11, it's a whole different ball game," Ali said.

India produces 25 percent of the world's software engineers, Ali said. One of the questions Ali was asked was how many of the students are U.S. citizens - and a majority are. BearingPoint does extensive work with federal agencies requiring security clearances.

When and if more companies return to the U.S., they may not head for California's Silicon Valley, Ali said, but to such non-traditional sites as Mississippi where overhead is low.

"If a state like Mississippi or Alabama would be able to go and prove to these companies that we can produce engineers, then they would invest here instead of India or Pakistan," Ali said.

Hattiesburg will be the site of software development for one of the world's largest business consulting firms which will hire 275 program developers over a three-year period with $40,000 average salaries.

BearingPoint Inc., based in McLean, Va., will hire engineers to develop computer software programs for federal and corporate clients. The work will include system design, development, unit testing and documentation.

Marc Lomas, 28, co-owner of local technology firm Lomas Technologies Inc., was impressed by the company's decision.

"It sounds like it's going to be a really great opportunity for a lot of university students," Lomas said. He wasn't surprised that Hattiesburg would be selected: "It's nice to know that we've got more of a tech emphasis in the South."

Hattiesburg was one of four finalists the company had selected for the location, said Angie Dvorak, president of the Area Develop-ment Partner-ship.

The area's talent pool from local colleges and the University of Southern Mississippi, its quality of life and a state-run incentive program worked in Hattiesburg's favor, officials said.

"You're really competing with every community in the United States," Dvorak said. "Their site selection people are considering everywhere."

BearingPoint is one of the world's largest business consulting and systems integration firms and was named Monday by Fortune 500 as one of America's Most Admired Companies in the computer and data services sector.

"This is a big deal. This is a signature company. This is a world class company," Dvorak said.