Computing degree applications soaring at University of Surrey
Friday 27 April 2007
Figures from the Universities & Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) for Computer Science and Information Systems degrees continue to show an overall decline in spite of a reported 6.4% rise in applications overall. Meanwhile, applications for these degrees at Surrey show a combined increase this year of over 60%, largely helped by the highly successful growth of Surrey’s Computer Science degree.
A dramatic increase in applications for undergraduate Computing degrees at the University of Surrey coincides with an alarming downtrend in applications countrywide and repeated warnings of an IT skills crisis.
Figures from the Universities & Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) for Computer Science and Information Systems degrees continue to show an overall decline in spite of a reported 6.4% rise in applications overall. Meanwhile, applications for these degrees at Surrey show a combined increase this year of over 60%, largely helped by the highly successful growth of Surrey’s Computer Science degree.
According to Dr Bill Mitchell, Admissions Officer for Computing degrees at Surrey, "Interest in our new Computer Science degree has resulted in more than twice as many students visiting the Computing Department, and we look forward to seeing an excellent cohort of future Surrey graduates".
According to various reports, however, numbers taking Computing degrees, and numbers of Computing graduates, have dropped nationally by over 30% since 2001. Declining numbers have led to the President of the British Computer Society (BCS), the professional body for the subject, repeatedly warning of an IT skills crisis. The most recent warning was heard in relation to the International Review of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Research. The Review recognizes the quality of UK computing research, but the BCS President warns of the sustainability of UK research and the IT industry at large.
The South East of England has a large proportion of the UK’s computer games, digital media, financial services and other high-technology companies, and the impact of falling graduate numbers overall could become most apparent in the region. Fortunately, a number of these high-technology companies employ students from Surrey during their placement year, and subsequently on graduation, and this could lessen the regional impact. The interface between the University and industry helps towards Surrey’s continued successes in graduate employment, with a large proportion of graduates returning to their placement employer.
Head of the Department of Computing at the University of Surrey, Professor Steve Schneider comments:
"Growth in applications, against a national decline, is encouraging for Surrey in the short-term. Departmental Outreach initiatives, aimed at encouraging uptake and sustainability of the subject, give us hope for the long term also. Allied to our relationships with the IT industry, infrastructural investments, and a rising profile of national and international recognition, this is an exciting time for Computing at Surrey."