The Benefits of Academic Collaborations with IT Companies

With the announcement that IT roles are being handed to more experienced job seekers than graduates (http://www.computing.co.uk/ctg/news/1930284/job-market-recovery-graduates-struggle-jobs),FDM Group’s Genna Singpo explains how collaborations between IT companies and academic organisations are becoming essential to defining relevant graduate and postgraduate training programmes for entry-level workers.
 
It seems that companies are favouring more experienced jobseekers when it comes to entry-level roles, with new graduates being overlooked despite the fact technology graduate vacancies in the UK have increased by almost 80 percent.
 
As a result, even though more than 25% of UK companies plan to increase their headcount in 2011, meaning a significant rise in vacancies for IT roles, IT graduates are still struggling to secure employment.

Companies need to be more willing to take on these graduates, identifying the skills needed for the particular roles and proving the appropriate training accordingly. There is a likelihood that companies will need to consider investing heavily in further learning and development to help students become more ‘work-ready’ if they aren’t receiving the appropriate skills they require from new joiners.
 
Graduate employers in particular need to do more to ensure these graduates have the relevant skills when they enter the jobs market, which is something beginning to be addressed through mutually beneficial partnerships between companies and academia to help both parties to achieve their goals of creating a well-rounded graduate.
 
Leading IT graduate employer, FDM Group, has joined forces with the University of Brighton to recruit graduate trainees and pay for them to receive a bespoke MSc in Applied Computer Science, designed to help students looking for fast-track career progression as IT professionals.

Graduate employers need to be prepared to offer further training for graduates straight out of university in order to fit in with their customer requirements. They should expect graduates with theoretical knowledge of their industry but with little practical implementation, knowledge or skill, which is where employers will need to plug the knowledge and skills gap by providing their own training to graduates fresh out of university.
 
This is where such partnerships can better equip individuals to stand out from other candidates applying for their chosen career, and ultimately bridge the skills gap between university and employment by providing them with the relevant academic qualifications as well as technical skills and commercial experience.
 
University courses can be out of touch with the developing technologies used by the blue-chip companies, failing to provide realistic opportunities for entry-level graduates. Graduate employers need to look further at engaging with colleges and universities to create stronger programmes, direct business involvement and real-world experience in business in order for them to individuals to succeed as IT professionals after university.
 
Collaborations with colleges and universities in order train graduates in specific commercial technologies directly tackles the skills shortage and ultimately create more opportunities for young people to kick-start their careers in highly skilled sectors such as IT and Finance.
 
Partnerships between companies and universities will help students looking for fast-track career progression by gaining the essential combination of postgraduate training and commercial experience, which will ultimately enable companies to continue recruiting the best candidates for the role.