More than 42,000 extra engineering, technology and science courses were added to students’ CAO selections at Level 8 and Level 6/7 during the period between March this year and now, resulting in the tech sector in Ireland suggesting a major corner has been turned.
The CEO of Fujitsu in Ireland Regina Moran said an additional 2,013 first preferences for Level 8 courses were added and 4,128 for Level 6/7, reflecting an excellent confidence and interest boost for the industry.
“We have been banging the drum throughout this year about the excellent career opportunities that exist in the ICT Industry in Ireland and encouraging second-level students to choose relevant courses at third level,” said Moran, who is also the chairperson of ICT Ireland.
More than 2,500 job vacancies in Irish tech sector
“More than 2,500 positions are open right now in the industry and with the anticipated continuing development of the industry here, as these students graduate they will be an incredible resource and source of innovation for Ireland.
“They will also be in a great position to take up challenging roles with great career opportunity right here in Ireland. In total, over 42,000 extra engineering, technology and the sciences courses were added to students’ CAO selections at Level 8 and Level 6/7 during the period between March this year and now.”
The Leaving Certificate results will be released tomorrow, 17 August. “This really is great news for the ICT industry and a trend I hope will continue into the future,” said Moran.
“More focus needs to be placed at second level to ensure that students do not ‘opt-out’ of science, engineering and technology-related classes before they have even had a chance to see where they might lead or whether they may enjoy them. In many ways, their and Ireland’s future depends on encouraging more towards this path,” she said.
Photo: Regina Moran, CEO of Fujitsu in Ireland
