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Key Facts

Demand for Skills

Growth, Recruitment Sources & Job Roles

  • Employment in the IT industry in Northern Ireland is predicted to grow at 2.4% per annum – three times faster than average employment growth. (1)
  • Around 1,970 IT jobs each year are created by growth and the need to replace those leaving the IT workforce in Northern Ireland. (1)
  • 19% of new recruits join from education, 50% from job changers, and 31% from other sources including unemployment. (2)
  • Recruits from education are most likely to enter Software professional or Technician type roles. (2)
  • Recruitment into IT roles from education is mostly from higher education with limited direct recruitment from schools. (2)
  • Graduates with Computing degrees make up around 68% of new graduate recruits to IT roles in Northern Ireland. 11% of new graduate entrants to IT roles come from business and administrative studies, 7% from engineering disciplines and 14% from other degree subjects. (4)

Skills requirements and Shortages

  • 22% of IT & Telecoms companies trying to recruit across the UK reported difficulties in attracting applicants with the right skills. (2)
  • In Northern Ireland, IT and Telecoms companies have one of the highest vacancy rates at 5% (average all sectors 2.1%). (3)
  • Skill shortages were found to be particularly prevalent within the IT and Telecoms sector in Northern Ireland where external skill shortages were a contributing factor in 84% of the difficult to fill vacancies compared to 34% across all sectors. (3)
  • The roles most often thought to be hard to fill were Software Engineers, Technical Support, Systems.
  • Designers, Programmers, Systems Developers and ICT managers. (2)

Salary information

  • Gross weekly earnings for IT professionals working full time are, on average 34% more than the average for all occupations in all sectors.
  • Advertised salaries vary by role, location and type of company but those entering IT roles can expect to earn between £15,000 to £21,000 for a junior or technician role and between £20,000 to £28,000 for graduate roles in software or systems development or network engineering. (5)
  • Employees can quickly progress within organisations with technical architects/team leaders earning £35,000 – £42,000 per year and project managers earning £35,000 – £50,000 per year.

Sources

(1) e-skills UK, IT employment growth forecasts and scenarios for NI, August 2006
(2) e-skills UK, Technology Counts: IT & Telecoms Insights 2008, January 2008. http://www.e-skills.com/technologycounts
(3) DEL, NI Skills Monitoring Survey 2005: SSC Summary report, February 2008
(4) Analysis of HESA Destinations of Leavers of Higher Education (DLHE) survey 2005
(5) Prospects Types of Jobs http://www.prospects.ac.uk/

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