Thales teams with UKESF to combat skills shortage
1 min read
Thales has pledged its support to the UK Electronic Skills Foundation (UKESF).
The company – one of the UK's top five employers of electrical and electronic engineering degree graduates – is supporting the entire UKESF programme, including the Go4SET schools' project for 12-14 year olds, summer schools for pre-university students and the undergraduate scholarship scheme.
Miranda Davies, director of emerging talent for Thales UK, said: "The sustained pipeline of graduates is vital to the health of Thales' UK operations.
"UKESF's focus on attracting younger students in UK schools to electronics was critical to our decision join as an industry partner."
UKESF was founded in 2010 to address the threat of a diminishing skills base in the UK electronics sector.
Last year, the ESCO report highlighted a 29% drop in the number of UK students undertaking electronic engineering degree courses at British universities since 2002.
Indro Mukerjee, UKESF chair and Plastic Logic ceo, said: "Partnering with global technology leaders like Thales is a vital part of our strategy.
"As well as highlighting that the UK is a global leader in electronics, it also helps send out a strong message to young people that there is a demand for electronics graduates across a range of careers and sectors."
