UK universities ‘not meeting skills needs’ of employers

The UK’s higher education sector is not providing employers with the digital skills they need, leading figures at some of the UK’s top universities have said, while urging HR departments to play their part in driving change through. Speaking at the Universities Human Resources (UHR) conference in Manchester yesterday, Dame Nancy Rothwell (pictured left), vice chancellor at Manchester University, said employers were calling out for graduates across different disciplines to be taught tech skills. “For universities like mine, the most pressing issue we’re hearing from our employers is digital skills – that’s coming through loud and clear,” she said. “We have a lot of digital companies located in Manchester – GCHQ has a big presence here – and big demands on our graduates. And it’s not just graduates in maths and computer science they want. They want graduates in history, English and politics with digital skills.”