Two Cheers for UK Progess on STEM Skills

By January 18, 2018 Press Releases

TIGA comments on NAO STEM report

The National Audit Office’s report, Delivering STEM skills for the economy, found that Government efforts to improve the quality and take-up of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) skills have yielded some positive results. There remains, however, an urgent need for departments to set out a shared view of what they are trying to achieve and a co-ordinated plan for achieving it before government can demonstrate that it is delivering value for money, according to today’s report from the National Audit Office.

Key statistics:

  • STEM A Level entries have grown by around 3% since 2011/12;
  • Enrolments in full-time undergraduate STEM courses grew by 7% between 2011/12 and 2015/16; and
  • Starts on STEM apprenticeships have grown by 18% between 2012/13 and 2016/17.

The full report is available online here.

Dr Richard Wilson OBE, Chief Executive Officer of TIGA, said:

“It is very encouraging that more young people are taking up STEM. Whether through A-levels and university or apprenticeships, it is important that the UK continues to grow participation in the STEM skills pipeline.

“Producing more STEM graduates is vital for the future of the UK video games industry. The global competitiveness of our industry is based to an important extent on the skills and abilities of our workforce.  It is the programmers, designers, engineers, artists and producers that create ground-breaking games. Talented staff allow the UK video games industry to compete on a global level, against competitors based in China, Canada, Japan and the US.

“The video games industry is doing its part to boost STEM skills. 80 per cent of games businesses provide on-the-job training, while 38 per cent provide formal training courses, both in-house and external. TIGA itself accredits high quality video games courses and works closely with universities to ensure our graduates can enter the industry with the right skills.

“However, we need to do more to increase the supply of people with good quality STEM skills. We also need to reduce and close the gender gap in STEM.  There is a consistent participation gap in terms of gender: in 2016/17, women made up only 9.4% of A Level examination entries in computing, 21.2% in physics, and 39% in mathematics, and just 8% of starts on STEM apprenticeship courses. As a trade body, we want to help broaden participation and we will work with the Government to this end.”

About TIGA

TIGA is a not for profit network for games developers and digital publishers and the trade association representing the video games industry. Since 2010, TIGA has won 24 business awards and commendations, an achievement which demonstrates our drive to meet and to exceed best practice. TIGA focuses on three sets of activities:

  • political representation;
  • profile raising; and
  • business services.

This means that TIGA members’ voices are heard in the corridors of power and positively represented in the international, national, regional and trade media. TIGA’s activities also serve to enhance the competitiveness of our members by providing benefits that make a material difference to their businesses, including a reduction in costs and improved commercial opportunities.

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