11 April 2017

Many of the skills developed by graduates on non-STEM degrees can be transferred into digital roles, thereby unlocking a “hidden talent pool”, says the FDM Group.

Based in London, FDM is a professional services company with a focus on IT and claims to be the UK’s largest IT graduate employer.

Earlier this year, it met with MPs to brief them on how non-technical students, in particular females, can be encouraged into digital roles to help fill the growing IT skills and gender gaps.

The briefing was based on insight gained from interviews the firm carried out among 400 of its female consultants.

The research, which was supported by Cisco, demonstrated that given the diversity of digital roles today, a technology related degree is not necessarily required to gain employment.

For instance, on its own graduate programme, FDM said the business analyst and project management streams in particular attract many non-STEM graduates, including those with degrees in classics, law, geography and politics, to name a few.

FDM COO Sheila Flavell acknowledged that while it’s important to encourage more girls to study STEM subjects, there are also real opportunities to encourage them to consider a career in IT whatever they are studying.

“Getting this message across to students who may be unsure if they can get into IT without a computer science degree could unlock a hidden talent pool that ultimately may help us meet the growing demand for digital skills.”

If the IT sector wants to take advantage of the transferable skills of non-STEM graduates, FDM believes it needs to increase visibility of roles available and overcome the negative perceptions of the industry.