Now’s your chance to join digital revolution
YOU don’t need a degree in computer science to make a career out of it.
Some 518,000 extra workers will be needed for the digital economy by 2020, but the Shadbolt Review of Computer Sciences Degree Accreditation and Graduate Employability found that universities were not preparing computer science graduates well enough for work.
Larissa Suzuki, honorary research associate at University College London (UCL), says: ‘I was always fascinated with electronics. I started pulling apart computers and found I could program them.’
Larissa went on to take a computer science degree in Brazil, followed by a master’s in electrical engineering and a PhD in computer science at UCL. She says: ‘I have worked on projects helping to save rainforests, detect breast cancer and create smart cities with sustainable buildings.’
But the 31-year-old, from London, adds: ‘Tech is very multidisciplinary. Do not worry about age or having a technical degree. It helps, but you can learn programming by using free online courses.’ Professor John Shawe-Taylor, head of the Department of Computer Science at UCL, says: ‘Computer science creates solutions to real problems, so you need a range of skills — from working with people, to the ability to create algorithmic solutions.’
Don’t let stereotypical ideas about computer scientists put you off.
Jo Foster, from the Institution of Engineering and Technology, says: ‘Computer science is a key sector in engineering, but only 9 per cent of engineers are female. It is perceived as masculine and unglamorous, but the reality is different.’