MATCHING the skillsets of graduates with industry needs is vital to ensuring Northern Ireland remains an attractive location for inward investment, according to Enterprise, Trade and Investment Minister Arlene Foster.
She was speaking recently at an awards ceremony for graduates from the Software Testers’ Academy which trained 27 graduates with the skills and accredited qualifications identified by the 20 participating employers for new job opportunities in their respective companies.
Mrs Foster said: “Matching the skillsets of our graduates with industry needs is vital to ensuring that Northern Ireland remains an attractive location for inward investment and a fertile ground for indigenous company growth.
“My department, through Invest Northern Ireland, works continuously to meet the skills needs of the ICT industry in Northern Ireland and I would encourage any unemployed graduate to consider a career in this vibrant and growing sector.”
Also attending the ceremony at Parliament Buildings, Employment Minister Stephen Farry said: “My department worked closely with employers and the further education sector to design and develop this academy to upskill HND and degree graduates, from any discipline, to be software testers.
“The academy model has been very successful and is now being offered in a number of areas, including data analytics and cloud technologies.”
Thirty-two trainees started the Academy with sixteen in each college.
Twenty-nine completed the nine-week college based training, gaining an industry recognised qualification, the foundation level ISTQB/ISEB, at SERC’s Lisburn Campus and at Belfast Met’s e3 Campus.