Need for technical skills driving up apprenticeships

Jo Faragher

More than a third of UK employers struggle to find graduates to fill IT and computing roles – and are looking towards apprenticeships to fill that skills gap – according to a survey from the job site Totaljobs.com.

The most in-demand graduates were those with technical skills, the report found, with positions in production and finance also proving difficult to fill.

The survey also found that there had been an increase in apprenticeships as a way of building skills internally in businesses, reflecting the fact there are not enough graduates with the appropriate skills to fill these roles.

Graduate Director at totaljobs.com, Mike Fetters, said: “There is definitely still a need for degree-level hires, but companies are increasingly understanding the value of taking on an apprentice as an effective way to address their skills shortages and foster a new generation of IT and business experts.” 

The findings follow previous research from Totaljobs.com earlier this year, which found that around half of employers reported a shift away from graduate recruitment towards apprenticeships.

This research also found that three in five (57%) firms are struggling to fill vacancies, while over a quarter (27%) said apprenticeships were crucial to addressing the deficit in skills. Furthermore, a quarter want to see business skills embedded within school education; and 18% called for degrees more appropriate for the world of work.  

Earlier this month, figures from High Fliers Research showed graduate vacancies to be at their highest level in five years, although still below pre-recession levels.