It’s alarming that the number of students studying GCSE ICT has declined by 25 per cent this year. With the UK currently experiencing a shortage of IT skills, we need to get the message out before students hit 14 that IT offers exceptional job prospects. Otherwise, they will miss out on the opportunity to forge a career in such an exciting and innovative industry – and our skills shortage will become even more critical.
There is huge demand for IT skills in this country, and it’s unlikely to be affected by the economic downturn – especially by the time yesterday’s crop of GCSE students graduates. We need to get the word out that IT is a creative, exciting place to be, offering much greater stability than other industries.
Government initiatives to support our industry with in-work training will fail if there are 25 per cent fewer interested teenagers every year. If the UK is to remain competitive in the global marketplace, we need to make up ground, starting with encouraging and recruiting young talent, so that our IT industry has the skilled people it needs.
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