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The Institute of Data has announced a commitment to offer and fund 1,000 new scholarships for Australian citizens and permanent residents to upskill or retrain in the fields of data science and AI, cyber security and software engineering.
Job openings in the data science and AI, cyber security and software sectors are stronger than ever, with some industry players such as Telstra, calling for increased immigration to address the skills gap.
It’s not sustainable for Australia to rely solely on importing talent when we have Australians here that want careers in technology, according to Andrew Campbell, executive director at the Institute of Data.
“As employers ourselves, we saw the need for shorter, targeted training courses that fit the needs of industry and mid-career professionals looking for a switch."
"These people want to upskill or reskill quickly to improve their potential employability, but traditional education isn’t giving them what they need," Campbell said.
“The Institute of Data has created practical and job-ready skills programs to solve this issue, so now it doesn’t take three years to upskill for a career in data, cyber or software."
Campbell further explains that the traditional undergraduate or master's programs simply take too long, and the current vocational training system hasn’t made the jump from training tradies to training data scientists.
“Our data, cyber, and software industry programs are designed with a singular focus on helping participants make industry connections and develop the practical skills and portfolio of work necessary to land a job in the industry," Campbell continued.
"Demand is so strong right now that we have reports of some students receiving two job offers before they even complete the program."
“Institute of Data trainers have all worked directly in these fields and provide one-on-one training and career mentoring. We offer students a truly world-class learning experience and the opportunity to launch their career in some of the most exciting and in-demand fields in the world,” Campbell said.
At least 1,000 scholarships that reduce course fees by up to 30 per cent will be offered by the Institute of Data to eligible students over the next 12 months.
Larger volumes of students can be trained with further support from industry, university and government partners. Graduates of Institute of Data programs can also articulate into master's programs at leading partner universities via the recognition of prior learning process, receiving up to 48 credit points worth of exemptions.
"We train people from tech and non-tech backgrounds over three months full-time, or six months part-time and 93 per cent of them have jobs in industry within 180 days."
"We need to do something different," Campbell concluded.
More details on programs and scholarships can be found on the Institute of Data website.
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Nastasha is a Journalist at Momentum Media, she reports extensively across veterans affairs, cyber security and geopolitics in the Indo-Pacific. She is a co-author of a book titled The Stories Women Journalists Tell, published by Penguin Random House. Previously, she was a Content Producer at Verizon Media, a Digital Producer for Yahoo! and Channel 7, a Digital Journalist at Sky News Australia, as well as a Website Manager and Digital Producer at SBS Australia. Nastasha started her career in media as a Video Producer and Digital News Presenter at News Corp Australia.
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