Graduates ignoring the potential of IT careers

Some argue that the IT industry is not doing enough to attract students

Record numbers of UK students are set to embark on university courses after today's A-Level results, but are failing to consider a career in IT despite excellent job prospects and growth potential, according to industry experts.

Matthew Poyiadgi, European vice president at IT trade association CompTIA, believes that the majority of students ignore the IT industry because they do not realise the breadth of opportunities on offer.

"More people are taking qualifications, presumably in the hope of getting a professional job, while graduate jobs are becoming harder to come by. Yet IT, a key area for economic growth, is struggling to attract people," he said.

"Part of the reason is that those without an IT degree don't consider IT a career path because they assume they're not qualified. Many think IT is just about programming, but often it's about managing infrastructure and developing strategies."

However, Jeff Brooks, chairman of the Recruitment and Employment Confederation's Technology Sector Group, argued that the IT industry is not doing enough to foster interest among students.

"Big firms like HP, IBM and Microsoft need to be more willing to take a chance on graduates and train them on the job. Instead, they make it very hard for those without experience to enter, therefore turning people away from the market," he said.

"It's a vicious circle whereby employees claim they can't get the skills they need, while turning away people who might otherwise be interested in the industry and could be taught the skills."

Brooks believes that many companies may be forced to recruit from overseas or outsource certain divisions, taking further employment opportunities away from those in the UK.

Davin Yap, chief executive of Cambridge-based software firm Transversal, underlined this point, warning that the lack of IT graduates will undermine the UK's position in the global IT market.

"If this worrying trend continues we won't have any choice but to look overseas to fill the shortfall," he said.

"The UK more than holds its own on the IT world stage and the quality of our technology graduates is very high, but a lack of fresh blood will just make a scarce resource even scarcer."

The government-backed Cyber Security Challenge was launched last month in a bid to reduce the skills gap in the security industry.