Two out of three Leaving Certificate students looking for jobs said they would not work in the science and technology sector because it would be too boring or because they were under-qualified, a survey has found.
The survey was conducted by an EU-funded youth employment initiative, the Technology Awareness Programme in Schools (TAPS) which is based in Tallaght, Dublin.
The survey of 385 Leaving Certificate students in seven Dublin schools showed that young people had negative perceptions of careers in science and technology.
It showed an inequality between the participation of boys and girls in science/technology subjects. Some 32 per cent of boys were studying physics, compared to 11 per cent of girls. Sixteen per cent of boys were studying engineering, compared to 2 per cent of girls.
Seven out of 10 students said they did not have enough access to computer education. Only one in five of those taking science and technology subjects chose them on the basis of awareness of the numbers of jobs available. Almost half of the boys and 13 per cent of the girls surveyed intended to study at institutes of technology. More than one-third of those surveyed said they intended to look for work immediately after leaving school. Of this group, 76 per cent said they did not intend to get a job in science and technology. Almost half said the work would be too boring, while 23 per cent said they felt they would not be sufficiently qualified. Ms Eileen Goold, the director of TAPS, said the findings were worrying given that current estimates show a predicted shortfall by 2003 of more than 2,000 engineering and computer science professionals and technicians.