Unemployment among IT graduates has fallen for the first time since the beginning of the
recession, research has found.
The number of
graduates out of work, after leaving university, dropped from 16.3 per cent in
2009 to 14.2 per cent in 2010, according to research from the Higher Education
Careers Services Unit (HECSU).
There was a 4.2
per cent rise in the number who had IT
jobs in the UK, with a total of 68.6 per cent in work, the annual survey of
graduates found.The proportion of
graduates working directly as IT professionals also jumped from 38.9 per cent
to 44.2 per cent. The majority of
these (14.4 per cent) were software designers and engineers, followed by
programmers and computer analysts (7.4 per cent) or web developers and
producers (5.8 per cent).
Google,
Microsoft, Unilever, BSkyB, Credit Suisse and Lloyds TSB Banking Group as well
as the NHS were just some of the companies and organisations that had employed IT
graduates. The research,
which some 8,845 people took part in, also found that less IT graduates are
undertaking further study. This number dropped sharply from 11.3 per cent to
9.5 per cent. However, a large IT
gender gap is still present, with the survey discovering that only one-fifth -
17.4 per cent, or 1,540 employees - were women.
Graduates were
undertaking a variety of Masters and PhD degrees, such as computer science,
management, computer games technology, computer security and resilience, e-business
and financial systems engineering. This shows the spectrum of emerging and
evolving industries where IT graduates are now required, such as the rapid
increase in gis
jobs available. Options for
non-IT degrees included law and international human resource management.
"The jobs market
for graduates in IT and computing degrees is improving, and the unemployment
rate is coming down," said Charlie Ball, HECSU's deputy research director. “It’s also encouraging to see many
graduates in the sector are going to work for small and medium-sized businesses
– often very exciting and dynamic places to start your new IT careers"
"Graduates
in computing and IT are also more likely than most to start their own business
and this enterprising streak is good for their careers and good for the
economy.”
According to
separate research, IT roles in the retail sector have risen this year by 21 per
cent. Advertisements for retail contract work increased by 24.4 per cent. And
ads for permanent positions in software companies and consultancies grew by
18.8 per cent in the past year. Job opportunities in financial industries rose by
3.9 per cent. Contract roles in the same sector jumped by 16.5 per cent in the
past 12 months. One industry
insider said that the increases were likely to be a result of firms outsourcing
to get costs down.
In early October,
figures released by the Office for National Statistics revealed that
unemployment in the UK was at a 17-year high. There are now nearly one million
young people between 16 and 24 who are jobless. Plans to recruit
5,000 business mentors to help push up the number of female entrepreneurs, and
to help kick-start the economy, were recently unveiled by the Government.
RSS Feeds