Deputy Premier, the Hon Andrew Stoner Launches NSW National ICT Careers Week

The Hon Andrew Stoner MP, NSW MP Deputy Premier, Minister for Trade and Investment, and Minister for Regional Infrastructure and Services, officially announced the New South Wales launch of National ICT Careers Week at the Australian Computer Society (ACS) stand at the CeBIT annual conference.

Examples of some of the events being organised include the ACS Foundation Student conference being held at UTS on May 28th, the Central Coast Careers event on June 26that Avondale College which 3,000 secondary school students will attend, and the annual ICT careers week event that will be held at the University of Wollongong.

At CeBIT, Minister Stoner said he was pleased to be officially launching the NSW ICT Careers Week. “The NSW Government supports initiatives such as National ICT Careers Week which encourage young people to enter into a career in ICT - one of Australia’s fastest growing industries. The recently released NSW ICT Strategy highlights the need to foster a workforce with sufficient technology skills, delivering vital digital services to sustain and grow the NSW economy,” said Minister Stoner.

Penny Coulter, Chair of the Careers Week Steering Committee said, “ICT careers are rewarding and dynamic. There are a diverse range of options in areas of study leading to a wide range of careers in NSW, across the country and internationally. The events held in NSW during ICT Careers Week aim to demonstrate the possibilities and opportunities to young people.”

John Ridge AM, Executive Director of the ACS Foundation, added: “The ACS Foundation supports promoting careers in ICT to secondary school students, and getting career information to the students and their influencers. It is more about trying to address some of the systemic obstacles students who are passionate about ICT and technology currently face, rather than artificially turning students onto a career in ICT.”

National ICT Careers Week: for more information visit www.ictcareersweek.info. -Ends-

About National ICT Careers Week

The annual National ICT Careers Week will be running across the country from 23 - 29 July 2012, with events and activities being presented by businesses, educational institutions, government agencies, industry bodies, women’s groups and professional bodies.

National ICT Careers Week showcases the opportunities in information and communications technology available to young people. We want to introduce young people to the rewarding and engaging career opportunities available across Australia and in the world.

The Australian Computer Society (ACS), ACS Foundation (ACSF), the Australian Council of Deans of Information and Communications Technology (ACDICT), the TAFE Directors’ Association (TDA), Australian Government Information Management Office (AGIMO) and the Australian Information Industry Association (AIIA) coordinate the National ICT Careers Week.

Organisations together with their events and activities are listed on the National ICT Career Week web sitewww.ictcareersweek.info. The web site is being constantly updated with new registrants and ICT week activities.

While the National Career Week is set for 23 – 29 July 2012, the Week can be used to advertise or market events promoting ICT study and careers that will be held throughout the year.

www.ictcareersweek.info