With 700,000 unfilled job vacancies in the IT sector, the EU is encouraging action to provide Europeans with the necessary skills to take up digital careers, according to an article by Elena Ralli on New Europe Online.

Despite the financial crisis that has left the EU reeling, the number of digital jobs is still growing by three per cent every year. According to Vice-President of the European Commission Neelie Kroes, the ICT sector is the new backbone of Europe’s economy.

This seems to bode well for the Maltese who, generation after generation, are taking to ICT as ducks take to water. The ICT industry is ideal for Malta. It is heavily dependent on investment in knowledge, while saving on brick and mortar and space in general.

Companies based in Malta are involved both in the development of ICT systems for local consumption, with the larger portion of employees focused on export of ICT services, such as the online gaming (casinos), the digital game industry, financial services, health services, digital media content, animation and creativity, and many other facets of ICT.

The industry caters for circa seven per cent of Maltese GDP, yet has the potential to grow exponentially and participate further in the generation of wealth for this smallest of European nations.

Why would an individual want to read for a computer science degree?

Computer science is integrated in everything we do. From the most basic household chore to the most sophisticated engine room, computers are integrated to facilitate the end-user communication with the mechanics of the device.

And time is not standing still. Every couple of years, we are experiencing a new revolution of devices. After we all thought the personal computer is here to stay, after netbooks were the most portable device we all thought we would use, after the awe of wireless mobile telephony, we got the smartphone and the tablet, which have set an upheaval in the digital devices world and opened huge opportunities for new digital media industries to emerge and develop.

The computer scientist is an individual who seeks a challenging existence, seeking a career as a protagonist in the solving of complex problems. Someone reading for a computer science degree is not a passive individual, since rigorous conditioning of mental processes ingrained during the academic and vocational development will gear the individual towards affecting a difference in the world.

People such as Mark Zugerberg, Jeff Bezoz, Steve Jobs and Bill Gates started from very humble beginnings, yet managed to transform the world practically overnight through digital innovation.

The pessimists have a tendency to downplay the importance of ICT as a career. Or if an economy is in the doldrums, people may think the scale of careers in ICT has been downsized. This is probably the current feeling in Malta, maybe because people expected thousands of new jobs to miraculously materialise through the Smart City project.

The reality, though, is that in the Maltese ICT scene, we will never experience a company moving to Malta seeking the immediate employment of hundreds of computer engineers. Our expertise is too refined. Our graduates are very knowledgeable and exceptional generalists.

The pessimists have a tendency to downplay the importance of ICT as a career

A company seeking low-cost production will look at countries such as India or China, where at a click of a mouse button, it can employ hundreds of computer engineers at a fraction of the cost of a Maltese graduate. The Maltese scene is different.

Companies in Malta seek the employment of software engineers every year, growing their business in an evolutionary manner, allowing for teams to build strong buttresses before making any further leaps or bounds.

Jobs in ICT are here to stay and people who are ready and willing to work hard and who have a collaborative mentality and are willing to invest the hours, will find the necessary rewards in their careers.

Technology is also deemed to be the entrepreneurial playground of the 21st century.

Innovation and creativity revolve around technology, and on what this can provide for those who are adventurous.

There is, therefore, no question that a degree in computing will feature as an essential part of a well-rounded academic preparation for any profession.

St Martin’s Institute of Higher Education, an affiliate institution for the University of London International, and licensed by the National Commission for Further and Higher Education, has been a pioneer in offering academic and vocational programmes in ICT for the novice and expert professional.

The institute was the very first to offer Maltese students the opportunity to read for a evening degree in Computing and Information Systems, in connection with one of the top three UK universities.

St Martin’s Institute instigated the introduction of the Information Systems Auditor profession in Malta through the setting up of the ISACA (Malta) Chapter and the CISA school.

St Martin’s remains the primary provider of education for computer games, with student teams having won the Gamezing 2011 and 2012 competitions. Above all, the institute has developed a pedagogy which puts the student at the centre of the educational process.

Charles Theuma is principal and founder of St Martin’s Institute of Higher Education.