The shortage of electronics engineers could get worse as the number of students opting to take electronics and electrical engineering degrees has fallen by a shocking 45 per cent over the last five years, according to a report last week.
"The number of engineering graduates going into engineering has stayed constant," said Sir Anthony Cleaver, chairman of the Engineering Technology Board (ETB) which produced the 'Engineering UK 2007' report. "But there has been a sharp decline in electronics and electrical, to almost half."
According to the report, the number of undergraduates opting for electronic and electrical engineering peaked in 2001 at 5,110, but fell to 2,884 in 2006.
Paul Jackson, director of professional operations at the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), believes this reflects the way industry is changing.
"At one level you can see that the subject, and the response to the subject, is changing and it sets alarm bells ringing," said Jackson. "But at another level engineering is becoming far more interdisciplinary so the total pool of people available, which is still around 100,000 in the UK, hasn't changed very significantly."
The report suggested there is "low demand for graduates from electronics firms", but Dave Meekison, human resources manager at 3M, said the firm would suffer from a drop in graduates. "Ours is a culture of developing from within so the graduate pipeline is key for us," said Meekison.
There is a trend towards more engineering graduates moving into engineering careers, but currently only a third of electronics graduates move into the industry, which Meekison said is a problem. "Attracting engineers into engineering is becoming increasingly difficult."
The low perceived demand for graduates could, in part, be because firms want experience, but this has to be gained somehow.
"Ultimately companies have got to take responsibility to bring through the next generation from graduation," said the IET's Jackson.
Harry Tee, chairman of the Electronics Leadership Council, said he was concerned that companies did not feel they were getting value from the current graduates.
"Whether they're less suitable, or the degrees are not as strong as they used to be, I don't know. I do know that everyone in industry I talk to would imply there's a shortage of engineers," said Tee. "So we need to encourage industry to get involved with graduates. They may have six to 12 months of less contribution, less productivity, but unless we do that these people are going to leave industry and go elsewhere."
Tee said the number of school children taking STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) subjects is increasing. "So it's not all bad news in the sense we're beginning to turn the corner, but we're still way, way behind other people," said tee. "33 per cent of Chinese university students are taking engineering subjects."
Other findings of the report include:
*Almost 30 per cent of engineering and technology undergraduates are from outside the UK. Over 70 per cent of electrical and electronics full time taught postgraduates are from outside the EU.
*Around 30 per cent of engineering and technology graduates and about a quarter of postgraduates enter work with employers in the finance and business sectors.
*The unemployment rate of engineering and technology graduates six months after graduation is one of the highest of any subject category at around eight per cent. The report queries "why such unemployment exists when there is a claimed shortage of engineers".
*The lowest salaries offered by engineering firms to graduates are for electrical/electronic engineering, earning an average of £22,500. However the mean salary for professional electrical/electronic engineers is highest at £39,592.
*Engineering apprenticeships are completed by 60 per cent of those that start them. Women make up just three per cent of engineering apprentices.