Students and other young people who have not established a career direction should consider going into IT, the British Computer Society (BCS) said today.

The membership organisation for IT professionals hopes to encourage young people, and young women in particular, who have not taken the traditional route of science-based A Levels and technical university degrees to investigate a career in the industry.

Dr Mike Rodd, BCS director of Learned Society & External Relations, said: "IT can be a lucrative and satisfying career choice.

"We want young people to know they have not missed the boat on getting into IT just because they did not study the 'right' combination of A Levels, or because they chose to go out to work instead."

He added that figures for 2007 show a modest increase in the number of applications for computer science undergraduate courses.

But the UK is still expected to have an estimated 40 per cent drop in graduates from IT-related courses in 2009 from the peak in 2004.

This could have serious repercussions for the UK economy, which greatly depends on its ability to exploit IT effectively, warned Rodd.

"A Levels and A level choices are often portrayed as the make-or-break time for teenagers in terms of their career choices," he said.

"However, A Level students and other young people who do not have a clue what they want to do, but who have an interest and ability with computers and computing, will be surprised to discover the breadth and range of exciting roles that can make use of their talents."