The time of year is fast approaching where students ditch the textbooks and head out into the world of work. So this is an ideal time for your business to fill the places on your graduate and internship schemes.
With 130 universities in the UK and 2,343,095 students in higher education in the year 2017/18, finding the right graduates can be a challenge. For those businesses in the technology sector, bridging skills gaps has never been more important. We took a look at four of the top 10 universities for computer science:
Imperial College London
ICL are known for their impeccable teaching quality. They offer a diverse range of undergraduate and postgraduate degrees in their Department of Computing. The options range from three-year Bachelor of Engineering degrees in Computing to more bespoke four-year courses.
If your business is based in London, the likelihood is you’ve come into contact with this university before. The Corporate Partnership Programme is designed to help both organisations and students find the perfect employment match. Industrial placements, talks, events, and competitions are just some of the perks available to those involved.
ICL was the alma mater of Hopewiser Australia’s General Manager, Matt.
“The education included a large element of practical application and a strong focus on developing concepts from existing knowledge. Critical analysis and development of ideas were encouraged even at undergraduate levels.
“The skills I developed in my time there have served me well. They allow me to continually learn, develop and apply them even after 25 years since graduating.”
University of Manchester
The University of Manchester’s School of Computer Science is the longest established school in its field in the UK, as well as being the largest. It boasts four research bodies which contain a merge of 10 individual research groups. The large number of study programmes on offer to students means this university covers all areas.
The School of Computer Science has a large and active Industry Club. Many of the school’s alumni go on to work at a variety of universities and research laboratories around the world. Including big name organisations such as Amazon, Web Applications UK, and Bentley Systems.
Loughborough University
Ranked fourth in The Guardian University Guide 2019, Loughborough University is also one of the top universities for computer science.
82% of its students find graduate-level employment or go on to further education within 6 months of graduating. The team in Computer Science won department of the year in this year’s Loughborough Academic Awards. The institution also hosts an enterprise scheme to help facilitate placement years or short-term summer placements.
Those students who are required to undertake a placement year must be employed for a minimum of 45 weeks. This mutually beneficial arrangement provides students with a lengthy period of time to gain valuable industry experience. Plus it allows businesses to hire them on a temporary basis to see how well the company benefits from their work. After all, hiring young people is a great way to close any skills gaps your business may be suffering from.
Durham University
The final institution in our top four universities for computer science graduates, is Durham University. Ranked sixth by competitor league table, The Complete University Guide, Durham is the third oldest in England. Despite having less variation in terms of course offerings, students can still undertake computer science-related degrees at bachelor’s, master’s, and PhD level. This means your business will be able to choose students from different academic levels.
Durham is proud to host the social enterprise, Stemettes, to inspire the next generation of females into science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. In an age of equal opportunities, working with such an organisation will not only help to diversify your business, but it will enhance your brand image too. It’s extremely important for businesses to take these measures, particularly in computer science which is known to be heavily male-dominated.
Here at Hopewiser…
The company has employed many a university graduate over the years, including our recent additions to our sales and marketing teams. Hopewiser’s graduate scheme is designed to attract bright, conscientious workers who are eager to learn. Employees have the opportunity to gain experience in their field of study, or train in something completely different. Inevitably some leave for pastures new, however, others stay and have been with the company for many years now.
Sources
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_universities_in_England
https://www.hesa.ac.uk/news/17-01-2019/sb252-higher-education-student-statistics/numbers
https://www.studying-in-uk.org/best-universities-for-computer-science-uk/
https://www.imperial.ac.uk/computing/industry/
https://www.cs.manchester.ac.uk/industry/club/
https://www.theguardian.com/education/ng-interactive/2018/may/29/university-league-tables-2019
https://www.lboro.ac.uk/departments/compsci/innovation/placement-information-for-companies/
https://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk/league-tables/rankings
, updated 21st February 2023.
Topic: Graduate RecruitmentTips