Tuesday 2 nd September 2014 Olivia Jones, Project Manager – Talent, Enterprise & Development Inga Sileryte, Research Assistant Undergraduate Placements in Computer Science: Uncovering the offer and learning best

NCUB Nurture the right talent, innovation and expertise for the UK’s future growth through effective, world-leading university and business collaboration.  Launched in 2013 in response to Professor Sir Tim Wilson’s review of university-business collaboration  Built on the 25 year history of predecessor body the Council for Industry and Higher Education (CIHE)  A UK-wide organisation, funded by: ‒Higher Education Funding Councils ‒Technology Strategy Board ‒Research Councils ‒54 University and 43 Business members

Our Research Project Undergraduate Placements in Computer Science: Uncovering the offer and learning best practice  Commissioned by The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills  Computer Science graduates have the highest level of graduate unemployment six months after graduation despite evidence of a skills shortage in the Computing industry.  Placements give students the skills and experience to facilitate the route into work on graduation.  NCUB’s role Placements: university-business collaboration Improving employability skills to meet a business need

Aim & Objectives  Establish the quantity and range of placements offered to and undertaken by computer science undergraduates in the UK  Investigate policies and practices  Examine how Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are engaging with students and employers  Identify features of good-quality placements  Provide a baseline from which appropriate improvement measures can be recommended

Our Approach - Methodology Collecting evidence in two stages: 1.Quantitative data collection – Electronic questionnaire – Follow-up questionnaire (telephone) – Confidentiality 2.Qualitative data collection – In-depth interviews (telephone and face-to-face)

Our Approach - Definitions Placement Any type of work experience that has been organised through the university and undertaken by students during their university years, accredited or not, including but not limited to sandwich years, shorter work placements integral to a course, vacation internships, and other work related activities. Computer Science Undergraduates A ‘computing undergraduate’ is any student in HE enrolled on a degree course within the Joint Academic Coding System’s ‘Computer Science’ subject group.

Evidence gathered  Quantitative evidence from 40 HEIs – 38% of computer science students in the UK in 2012/13 (all years) – 9 HEIs in the London area, 24 from other areas of England and 7 from Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland – 5 HEIs in the Russell Group and 35 ‘post-92’ universities  In-depth interviews with 13 HEIs  Case studies from 10 HEIs  Business views from 3 large employers

Findings I.Number and type of computing placements in higher education II.Placement take-up III.Quality IV.Business views

Number and type of computing placements  The distribution of computing placements across HEIs ranges from 288 to 0  On average 6% of computing undergraduates (all years) undertook a placement in 2012/13  96% of computing placements in our sample were accredited  94% of the placements in our sample were over 24 weeks long  96% of computing placements were undertaken during term time  96% of the placements accounted for were taken during the 3 rd year of the degree

Placement records  The majority of recorded placements are sandwich placements  HEIs believe long-term placements bring greater benefits to students than short-term  Few HEIs record short-term placements  Growing interest in short-term placements  No recorded data to ascertain the total number of computer scientists that graduate having undertaken a placement

Characteristics of computing placements  Placement roles  Placement payment -93% of computing placements were reported as being paid

Placement take-up What limits the take-up? Supply of placements from business Demand for placements from students

Supply - Placement providers The private sector is the most common provider of computing placements (84%)

Supply - Placement providers Computing placements were undertaken in companies of all sizes, with the majority (46%) being undertaken in large companies

Supply - Placement providers Region No of companies Average % per HEI Micro companies (0-9 employees) Small companies (10-49 employees) Medium companies ( employees) Large companies (250 and more employees) London Area (8 HEIs) 29510%15%11%63% The Rest of England (20 HEIs) 9307%21%22%49% Other UK regions (4 HEIs) 2297%36%17%40% Mission group No of companie s Average % across HEIs Micro companies (0-9 employees) Small companies (10-49 employees) Medium companies ( employees) Large companies (250 and more employees) Russell Group (5 HEIs)1311%12%6%80% Non-Russell Group (27 HEIs)13499%23%21%46%

Supply - Placement providers The effect of company size on placement provision  Benefits from providers of all sizes  Differences: -Application cycles -Resources  Support from HEIs: ‒Preparing placement offers ‒Selecting students ‒Involved with interviews ‒Leveraging funding

Supply - Placement providers  HEIs receive offers of placements from employers  HEIs’ supplies of placement opportunities come from existing relationships

Demand – Student Engagement  Factors affecting student demand -Placement application process -Confidence -Financial pressures  HEI actions to increase student demand -A dedicated resource -Compulsory enrolment -Placement modules -Social media

Quality Quality assurance processes demonstrate the importance of HEI involvement in placements:  Ensure legal requirements are fulfilled  Set criteria and technical requirements  Set clear objectives and manage student and employer expectations  Academic staff visits to placement students  Placement evaluation

Quality Commonly identified features that further enhance the quality of a placement  Real work is carried out - adds value to both the student and employer  The employer provides support through a committed resource  Students develop both academically and personally  The best indicator of a high quality placement: an extended relationship with the employer…ideally a graduate job!

Business Views Three large employers that specialise in technology services  Recruitment processes  Optimum placement duration  Student skills valued by industry Feedback to HEIs  HEI staff visits to placement students are important  Better alignment needed between academic and business calendars  Create a single point of reference Benefits  Recruitment  Academic connections

Findings – To sum up I.Number and type of computing placements in higher education – The quantity and characteristics of recorded placements II.Placement take-up – Supply of placements from business – Demand for placements from students III.Quality – Quality assurance processes – Features of good quality placements IV.Business views

Recommendations 1. Replicate good practice  Share best practice case studies to encourage others 2. Identify gaps in evidence  Introduce an additional question in the DLHE survey  Further research: barriers to student take-up & are they specific to computer scientists? 3. Identify problems to address  HEIs: consider how they can implement procedures for recording all placements  HEIs: consider quantifying the relative effectiveness of student engagement strategies  HEI careers services: examine use by computer science students  Businesses: consider earlier involvement to encourage student uptake

Questions and feedback Contact us: Report due to be published in October Visit to find out morewww.ncub.co.uk