Digital Skills Academy in partnership with DIT has launched a new level 8 honours degree programme focused on providing job seekers with skills for employment in the digital media industry, in areas such as mobile app development, web commerce, global digital marketing and web video production.
The WebElevate programme is part of the Government’s Springboard initiative and offers job seekers the opportunity to take up a part-time programme in higher education and training, free of charge.
Delivered by Digital Skills Academy, WebElevate has places for 120 job seekers, who aspire to work in the digital media sector.
“The Irish technology sector in Ireland and internationally offers so many exciting employment opportunities for people with the right skills,” said Paul Dunne, CEO of Digital Skills Academy.
“Not least because of the continued rise in IT employment – in excess of 2,500 jobs are currently unfilled in the ICT and gaming industries in Ireland.
“While supporting the growth of the digital media sector, we aim to support job seekers to build on the skills that they have from previous employment so they can find a new and rewarding employment path,” Dunne said.
Structured work placements a key part of the programme
A key component of the programme is structured work placements on industry projects, with participants working in multi-disciplinary teams developing applications and services in the fields of mobile applications, e-commerce services and web video products.
“The launch of WebElevate will be a great advantage for internet businesses in Ireland and job seekers who need to reskill in this area,” Colm Lyon of Realex Payments said.
“From our perspective, the online industry is going from strength to strength and presents a huge opportunity for Irish businesses to grow, yet there is a distinct digital skills shortage.
“The fact that the course is geared towards preparing students to work in the industry and is delivered by industry professionals will no doubt give students a great advantage to finding employment,” Lyon added.
