The new IT diploma has not increased the number of girls
interested in the subject, despite hopes that the vocational nature
of the course would appeal to a wider range of students.
The diploma is a large part of the fight to
plug the IT skills gap, which has plagued the UK for years and
led to foreign IT workers becoming heavily relied upon. Around
141,000 new recruits to the profession are needed in the UK each
year, but computer science degree courses currently only attract
around 13,000 students each year.
An Ofsted report into the progress of diploma courses, which
were launched in September, found that the numbers of girls on the
technology course are low.
The report says: "Participation by female students on the
diplomas was low and below that for comparable IT courses."
IT sector skills council e-skills has campaigned for a new type
of IT course at schools,
criticising the current GCSE and A-level cirricula. It has also
campaigned to get more girls interested in IT at school as a way of
increasing numbers.
Progress in implementing the diploma was generally considered to
be good, and the course is still in its early stages - not all
schools and colleges offer it yet.