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| Forfás Chairman Eoin O'Driscoll |
Micheál
Martin TD, Minister for Enterprise, Trade & Employment today launched a
new report by Forfás which indicates that starting salaries for science
engineering and technology graduates are amongst the highest of all Irish
graduates. The report Comparative Starting Salaries and Career Progression in
Science, Engineering and Technology was launched at a
Discover Science and Engineering Awards of Science Excellence ceremony in
Cork.
Speaking
at the awards ceremony Minister Martin said, “This report highlights the
exciting careers and levels of opportunity open to graduates and students in the
science, engineering and technology sector. These graduates and students are at
the forefront of Ireland’s transition as a world
leading knowledge economy, working at the cutting edge of innovation and
research.
I
particularly welcome the findings of the report in light of the announcement of
the new Strategy for Science, Technology and Innovation, which the Government
announced details of last week and for which funding of €2.7 billion has been
allocated from now until 2008. Attracting students to the Science Engineering
and Technology disciplines from primary through to fourth level will be
critically important to delivering the long term aims of the strategy and I’m
confident the outcomes of this report will enhance the attractiveness of the
this sector to potential students. The investment in the Strategy for Science,
Technology & Innovation will also ensure that the opportunities and
development of the SET sector will continue well into the
future”.
“This
report shows both graduates and those currently examining Science, Engineering
& Technology as a career option that there are opportunities available to
them, not only in these disciplines but across a wide range of areas. It is
interesting to note that the report highlights the flexibility that a
qualification in the Science, Engineering & Technology discipline offers to
graduates in terms of the number of employment sectors and occupations that they
can enter ranging from the healthcare sectors to Business Information Systems”,
added Minister Martin.
The
main findings of the reports are:
- Across
a range of qualifications from primary degree to PhD level the report shows that
graduates in disciplines with a strong science and technology content tend to be
better paid than graduates in other disciplines.
- Graduates
in medicine and healthcare, disciplines which have a substantial scientific
content, are amongst the best paid. At primary degree level 75% of dentistry
graduates and 68% of paramedical graduates earn in excess of €33,000 in their
first year.
- The
next highest paid graduates at primary degree level are those in engineering and
computing and science. Within the engineering disciplines chemical and
processing engineers are the highest paid in their first year of work with 23%
earning in excess of €33,000.
- Within
the computer sector Business Information Systems graduates are the highest paid
with 21% of these graduates also earning in excess of €33,000.
- Salaries
compare favourably with non- Science, Engineering & Technology disciplines
most notably the humanities, commerce and business studies and law. Only 3% of
humanities graduates and 5% of commerce and business studies graduates earn more
than €33,000 in their first year. None of the primary degree Law graduates
surveyed earned over €33,000, and only 25% earned over €23,800.
- The
trends continue at higher and graduate diploma, taught Masters degree and PhD
level. Those with a strong science and technology content leading to higher
starting salaries than graduates in other
disciplines.
- At
primary degree level the report confirms that since a severe fall off in
2001/2002, applications for engineering/technology which includes many
Information and Communications Technology (ICT) courses have steadied. The fall
off in 2001/2002 was attributable to the severe global downturn in the ICT
sector during that period. The share of applications for science and applied
science also shows signs of improvement and is now rising steadily. This is in
contrast to the share of applications accounted for by administration/business
which has fallen steadily since 2000 and for law which has been falling since
2002
(We
will put a link to report when available)
