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Technology jobs in Edinburgh, East Lothian and Midlothian are expected to swell by almost a third over the next decade.
Latest figures from Skills Development Scotland (SDS) reveal the sector is earmarked for rapid growth by 2027, resulting in an urgent need for qualified graduates.
In their latest paper, Scotland's Digital Technologies Summary Report 2017, SDS identify graduates in technology, science and maths as being in particular demand.
We see it as a great way for our staff, who may not have come through the standard computer science route, to get a proper grounding in computer science
They also state job opportunities in Digital Technology, such as the manufacture of IT hardware and websites, are expected to increase in the coming years.
Heriot-Watt University is well-placed to help meet this demand and offers a pioneering education programme that allows individuals to study while in paid employment.
Graduate Apprenticeships provide employers with the opportunity to identify talent early while offering existing staff the chance to up-skill. The degree programmes have been developed in partnership with Skills Development Scotland with support from the European Social Fund.
Dr Robin Westacott, Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering at Heriot-Watt University and leader for the GA programme, said: “As an industry-focussed university, we understand the challenges that businesses face in attracting and retaining talent in the IT sector.
“I'm delighted to say that the feedback from employers, apprentices and lecturers on last year's IT Management and Software Development Graduate Apprenticeship programmes, is very positive and together we are achieving excellent results.
“Employers welcome the benefits such as talent development and retention, increased productivity and staff engagement in their own professional development. We're blurring the boundary between the academic and business environment and we've learned a lot from each other.”
Scottish Water is one of the companies who nominated their IT Partner Management Analyst, Supta Das, for the IT Management for Business Graduate Apprenticeship at Heriot-Watt.
Supta's line manager Sally Lawson, Lead IT Partner Consultant, Business Supply, said: "The flexibility of the apprenticeship has ensured that Supta has been able to continue performing her partner analyst role, whilst at the same time gaining an industry recognised qualification.
"We see it as a great way for our staff, who may not have come through the standard computer science route, to get a proper grounding in computer science. This will benefit the individual as well as Adobe in the long term.”
Software giants, Adobe, has also benefitted from the Software Development for Business Graduate Apprenticeship programme offered by Heriot-Watt.
Their Engineering Manager, Nicholas Goodall, said: “We see it as a great way for our staff, who may not have come through the standard computer science route, to get a proper grounding in computer science. This will benefit the individual as well as Adobe in the long term.”
Employers can learn more about Graduate Apprenticeships available at Heriot-Watt during a Business Breakfast on Wednesday 9th of May at 8:30am in the Marriott Hotel located at the Edinburgh Campus. For more information please email ga@hw.ac.uk