QUT in partnership with the Australian Information Industry Association’s (AIIA) is supporting the growth of Australia’s ICT workforce, today announcing that more than 1,340 Queenslanders have now participated in the two pilot Queensland Government supported ICT micro-credentialing courses in the past 12 months.
Over 820 people have completed the joint AIIA and QUT co-designed Cyber Security course and over 500 people have completed the Strategic IT-Enabled Innovation course.
With demand for ICT jobs in Australia greatest in South-East Queensland, graduates of the AIIA’s Skills Hub courses have work-related skills with industry recognised credentials.
The two pilot courses were co-designed by AIIA members in partnership with QUT to ensure that the skills acquired by participants met industry needs. The first course focuses on improving the professional skills of digital workers aimed at supporting digital innovation. The second course is designed to improve the cyber security capability for non-cyber professionals within Australia’s digital workforce.
QUT’s Director of Open Professional Education, Dr Peter Beven said:
QUT is proud to partner with AIIA to deliver these courses. We pride ourselves on delivering real-world courses that deliver work-ready skills. We have seen strong demand from professionals to grow their digital skills to support their career journey. The Cyber Security Coursework and the IT Enabled Innovation courses were developed with the skills needed by today’s digital workers.”
AIIA CEO, Ron Gauci said: “The pilot for our micro-credentialing courses has been embraced by industry and workers. Thanks to the Queensland Government’s funding, we have provided high-quality courses with QUT that have upskilled Australian ICT workers and we are committed to continue to work with them to expand the program.
This successful pilot demonstrates that we need an ongoing commitment from government, with the AIIA’s expertise, to roll out this program as a state-wide co-designed Cyber security course with QUT as well as across other higher educational and VET providers to continue boosting skills across Queensland. ICT has grown to become Australia’s third-largest sector of the economy.
The high participation rate by Queenslanders in these two micro-credentials goes a long way towards government being able to achieve its objectives of the Digital Professional Workforce Action Plan.
“Australia’s ICT workforce is struggling to keep up with this growth and demand for skills. With 1.1 million people expected to be employed in the ICT sector by 2026, we must provide opportunities to grow and develop our workforce. The way our micro-credentialing courses have brought education providers, the ICT industry and workers together demonstrates that we need these types of courses across the country. There is massive demand for skilled ICT workers across Australia, and we are contributing by training and upskilling Australian workers to meet the evolving needs of the ICT industry,” Mr Gauci said.
“Australia has the chance to be a world leader in digital innovation, we must grasp this opportunity and provide a framework to build around. It is time for governments to realise the digital change that is occurring and to act now to support Australia’s ICT growth,” Mr. Gauci concluded.
Original article written by Thrive PR for AIIA.
Read more about the AIIA, Queensland Government and QUT:
- $400,000 investment to develop tech skills in Queensland
- AIIA Skills Hub benefit for QUT alumni and QUTeX community
