APPENDIX 15
Memorandum from the Council of Professors
and Heads of Computing (CPHC)
Information Technology has become integral to
the way countries and companies compete. It has become fundamental
to how each of us lives our daily lives. IT skills, therefore,
lie at the heart of our success as individuals and as a nation.
The scope of the challenge is broad; it goes from the factory
floor to the board room, from the corridors of power in government
to the hospital ward. IT literacy and digital inclusion are key
parts of the government agenda . . . Action is required if the
UK is to continue to be one of the beneficiaries rather than one
of the casualties of the Information Age. The responsibility for
taking this forward lies with business, government, the education
sector and the UK's employees themselves.[7]
Success today in a developed nation's industry,
education, and commerce seems to depend increasingly on bringing
the latest computing technology to bear. Failure to keep up brings
the risk of failure in the global marketplace. And with barriers
to international commerce falling (especially in western Europe),
failure in the global marketplace brings failure in the local
marketplace. In addition, we find critical national infrastructures—communication,
finance, energy distribution, and transportation, not to mention
civil and national defence—also coming to depend more and
more on networked computer systems. Thus, at least in developed
nations, quality of life is affected by access to computing technology
and expertise in deploying it.[8]
SUMMARY
Before answering the specific questions posed
by the Committee, we provide the context for our responses. This
context:
— Introduces the subject body for Computing
that represents all universities in the UK;
— Summarises why IT is vital for the
future competitiveness (if not survival) of this country;
— Outlines employers' needs for IT
professionals;
— Looks at the role of Computing departments
in universities in supplying the needs of employers in private
and public sectors;
In answering the Committee's questions, we highlight
some serious difficulties that the majority of Computing departments
face as a result of decisions that lie outwith our control.
ABOUT CPHC
CPHC is the subject body for Computing for all
universities in the UK. "Computing" is concerned with
the understanding, design and exploitation of Information Technology,
perhaps the most significant advance of the twentieth century.
The design and the exploitation of computer technologies lie at
opposite ends of the spectrum that Computing represents. Some
of our members focus on the design of sophisticated, high-performance
computer systems, others focus on innovative software technology,
while others address the integration of information systems into
organisations (such as the NHS) to improve efficiency and customer
service. Computing supports the goals of the largest and smallest
organisations, and helps individuals in their everyday lives;
it is ubiquitous and diversely applied to a range of applications,
yet important components are invisible to the naked eye. Computing,
or Information Technology is the infrastructure vital to the knowledge
economy. CPHC works very closely with the British Computer Society,
the professional body for Computing.
IT AND COMPETITIVENESS
The IT industry makes a significant and increasing
contribution to the UK economy. It represents almost 5% of the
total UK GVA and is almost twice as productive as the all-industry
benchmark.[9]
The UK IT Industry is also a major European player, with the UK
IT services sector being the largest by turnover and number of
enterprises of all sectors of the EU. Computer Services, with
Electrical, Electronic and Instrument Engineering, are also the
areas of the UK economy that enjoy the largest international market
for their products, measured as a percentage of the business in
an industry.[10]
It is undoubtedly a subject "at the heart of the UK economy
and is a key source of competitiveness for all sectors, opening
new markets, increasing performance and driving productivity",[11],
underpinning innovation and competitiveness in every sector of
the economy. Indeed, IT-intensive industries represent 45% of
the total UK GVA, which exceeds the corresponding figure for all
other G7 countries save Germany.[12]
IT AS AN
ENABLER AND
DRIVER OF
CHANGE
"A series of trends are emerging which
cause, and are caused by, greater exploitation of IT by an informed
community of interest."[13]
Among these trends are mobile computing, which supports remote
and collaborative working, while providing new opportunities for
organisations (such as the NHS) to communicate effectively with
customers and clients. Information Technology has provided new
channels to markets. The internet is now used routinely for shopping,
banking and other financial services and, increasingly for access
to government and its services. Another trend that is enabled
by IT but also has an impact on IT-related industries is the offshore
outsourcing of services and business processes.
E-LEARNING
"I see ICT and its potential to transform
how we teach, learn and communicate as crucial to our drive to
raise standards."[14]
IT provides the infrastructure for e-learning, which enables learners
to reduce their dependence on the place and time of study. Notwithstanding
the spectacular failure of UKeU, government, Hefce and the education
sector remain committed to the appropriate use of technology to
support learning.
THE IT WORKFORCE
1.2 million people are employed in the IT sector
in the UK, and the workforce is forecast to grow by between 1.5%
and 2.2% per year for the next decade. In addition, it has been
forecast that from within the IT industry, there will be a need
to replace workers who are moving into non-IT roles, taking career
breaks or retiring. The total demand for new staff in the IT workforce
has therefore been estimated at 156,000 to 179,000 per year.[15]
COMPUTING IN
UNIVERSITIES IS
CRUCIAL
Supply of graduates
Universities have a key role to play in delivering
this trained workforce, either as graduates from a spectrum of
IT-related courses, or through retraining. Specialist, high-level
computing education is essential to the UK's competitive position,
especially in areas such as security, maintenance of business
critical systems, internet and communications technology, the
development of highly complex information systems (particularly
in the public services), and healthcare technology. Without an
adequate supply of skills in these areas, the UK will suffer a
slowdown in economic growth as companies look beyond the UK to
supply these skills. This is easy to do given the global market
for IT services and the ease of global communication. Further,
public services will be squeezed out of the competition for IT
talent, as commercial enterprises offer higher salaries.
Research
"In a number of areas, the UK is a world-wide
leader, demonstrating an outstanding record of innovation and
first-rate science."[16]
Since the earliest days of computation, UK research has had a
significant impact on the development of and the application of
the technologies it has spawned, and it is also key in the majority
of research and development activity in industry and universities
in the UK. Virtually all science and technology (the genome project,
for example) relies on easy access to state-of-the-art computer
expertise. Today, industry in the UK, Europe and US benefits directly
from research conducted in UK universities. Some of that work
is funded directly by the beneficiary (such as Rolls Royce, BAE
Systems, BT, Airbus, Daimler Chrysler, NHS, Microsoft, IBM) and
some through the dual support system via research councils and
the funding councils. Internationally sponsored research is a
means of inward investment. PhD students from UK universities
are an important source of research capacity for UK-based companies.
Knowledge Transfer
Many universities engage in knowledge transfer
activities with (usually local) organisations, ranging from multinational
companies, through SMEs to microbusinesses. The Knowledge Transfer
Programme is a particularly effective mechanism for supporting
businesses.
e-learning
Computing departments have driven innovations
in the application of their own technology to support learning.
It is important that UK-based academics, through their own research
and innovations in learning and teaching technology engage in
driving e-learning forward. Or, as the Secretary of State continued
in her keynote address to BETT 2005 "We must be sure that
we are squeezing every ounce of innovation from new and emerging
technology. We should not simply wait for technology to offer
solutions. We must also drive technological developments by clearly
articulating what it is that learners and teachers need. By combining
the forces of supply and demand in this way we can tease out the
best that ICT has to offer."
ISSUES RAISED
BY THE
COMMITTEE
This submission to the Science and Technology
Committee from CPHC clearly addresses the concerns the Council
has for the ability of universities to respond to the national
needs for appropriately skilled graduates and for innovation in
the development and innovative application of Information Technology.
While the plight of other sciences and technologies is frequently
acknowledged, in answering the questions posed by the Committee,
we illustrate that the problems we face in our own discipline
should be of no less concern to government. We strongly support
the Committee's initiative to safeguard the level of science teaching
and research across universities in England.
1. The impact of HEFCE's research funding
formulae, as applied to Research Assessment Exercise ratings,
on the financial viability of university science departments
The financial returns from RAE 2001 were a great
disappointment to many Computing departments (and their Vice-Chancellors),
especially in the many cases where a significant improvement in
performance yielded a lower income. This has led to some structural
changes and re-focussing of effort in some departments, but is
not on its own a major cause for concern. However, it becomes
highly significant when juxtaposed with shortfalls in income from
teaching (see the answer to point 3 below).
2. The desirability of increasing the concentration
of research in a small number of university departments, and the
consequences of such a trend
The definitions of quality levels in the Guidance
to panels for RAE 2008, just published as RAE 01/2005, makes it
clear that a broader distribution of research income through QR
is not the intent. RAE 2008, coupled with the application of Full
Economic Costing from 2005-06, will lead to an even greater concentration
of research. While CPHC supports the maintenance of world-class
research in Computing in the UK, it does not support the ever-increasing
concentration of that research in fewer and fewer institutions.
It is a myth that researchers need to be concentrated—most
researchers collaborate with colleagues in other institutions
across the UK and across the globe, and less frequently with colleagues
in the office next door. CPHC believes that there needs to be
a broad research base that informs excellent teaching and provides
a local source of expertise for businesses and organisations.
Students who wish to study Computing should be able to access
undergraduate and postgraduate programmes locally.
3. The implications for university science
teaching of changes in the weightings given to science subjects
in the teaching funding formula
Following the "dot com" shake-out
of 2001, applications for undergraduate Computing courses have
fallen by over one-quarter from 2001 to 2003; simultaneously,
HEFCE[17]
reduced the level of its funding for Computing by 35%, by moving
it from Band B to Band C, which had a much greater impact than
for any other subject in science and technology. These two factors
have reduced budgets for Computing in universities and led to
reductions in staff at a time when, according to the Government's
own reports, employers are increasingly demanding higher level
skills in this area. (For some universities, the impact has been
exacerbated by shortfalls in research income.) For 2005 entry,
applications to Computing would appear to be increasing again.
A brief survey of members revealed that almost
all universities passed on the funding shortfall to departments.
As a result, a number of universities, old and new, are having
to shed staff to make up shortfalls of the order of £500,000
per annum. HEFCE's funding decision has had a major impact. See
Annex A for CPHC's submission to Sir Howard Newby in response
to HEFCE's "consultation" on the funding (not printed).
We believe that HEFCE's methodology was fatally flawed.
4. The optimal balance between teaching and
research provision in universities, giving particular consideration
to the desirability and financial viability of teaching-only science
departments
CPHC does not support the notion of teaching-only
science departments. Science is underpinned by the application
of high-level knowledge to the process of discovery, to satisfying
curiosity—by research. As noted above, we believe that excellent
teaching should be informed by research and we believe that local
universities should be drivers of local and regional economies
through the application of their knowledge and expertise. There
is increasing evidence (see, for example: http://www.economist.com/world/europe/displayStory.cfm?story id=3556596
) that international students are becoming more selective and
have a greater number of choices available to them, especially
in continental Europe, where research-active universities offer
attractive programmes, all taught in English. A teaching-only
institution will have no appeal. This is one of several self-imposed
threats to the Prime Minister's Initiative (to recruit international
students).
5. The importance of maintaining a regional
capacity in university science teaching and research
CPHC believes that a number of universities
will not be able to respond to an increase in demand, if the attrition
is as high as reported. This will have a significant impact on
widening access and participation. As our letter to Sir Howard
noted, UCAS statistics show that Computing (and Mathematics) have
been very successful in widening participation with respect to
other areas. In fact, HEFCE's own performance indicators show
that Computing and Mathematical Sciences had the second highest
proportion of young entrants from social classes IIIM-V between
1998 and 2001, while at the same time, it accounted for the third
highest proportion of students from low participation neighbourhoods.
We fear that students who are not in a position to travel to study
will be denied the opportunity to study Computing at their local
university. (See also our response to 2.)
6. The extent to which the Government should
intervene to ensure continuing provision of subjects of strategic
national or regional importance; and the mechanisms it should
use for this purpose
While universities are autonomous institutions,
vice-chancellors have few reasons to depart from the funding models
set down by HEFCE in allocating their internal resources. HEFCE
and the Government should understand how its own decisions on
funding (not good for any science, but especially bad for Computing)
are at odds with the avowed priorities of DfES, Treasury and dti,
and that the UK's future competitiveness, on a variety of fronts,
is being seriously compromised.
It is difficult to predict the impact of variable
fees when they are introduced in 2006. It is possible that there
will be a negative impact on recruitment to science and technology
programmes. The Government needs to incentivise the study of subjects,
including computing, of key strategic importance to the UK economy,
through its own system of bursaries to allow students to study
subjects of national strategic importance, and to ensure that
those subjects are adequately funded by individual higher education
institutions.
We believe that the Government should waive
fees for Computing graduates (and other science and technology
graduates) to pursue a PGCE, so that we counter the vicious circle
of decline that seems to be gathering pace.
CPHC believes that the unchecked approval of
offshore outsourcing will lead to the erosion of the UK's science
(and technology) base, through the increased migration of work
overseas. It is not just work requiring low-level skills that
is going offshore, jobs requiring graduate-level knowledge, ability
and skills are not far behind. See Annex B, a report produced
by CPHC.
January 2005
7 IT insights: trends and UK skills implications,
e-skills UK and Gartner Consulting, November 2004, p 7. Back
8
International Review of UK Research in Computer Science, Fred
B Schneider & Mike Rood, Editors, EPSRC, BCS & IEE, 2001. Back
9
IT insights: drivers of demand for skills, e-skills UK
and MRM Solutions Ltd, November 2004. Back
10
21st century skiolls: realising our potential, HMSO, July
2003. Back
11
IT insights: trends and UK skills implications, e-skills
UK and Gartner Consulting, November 2004, p 18. Back
12
IT insights: trends and UK skills implications, e-skills
UK and Gartner Consulting, November 2004, p 19. Back
13
IT insights: trends and UK skills implications, e-skills
UK and Gartner Consulting, November 2004, p 22. Back
14
Ruth Kelly, Secretary of State for Education & Skills, BETT
2005 Keynote Address. Back
15
IT insights: trends and UK skills implications, e-skills
UK and Gartner Consulting, November 2004, pp 34-35. Back
16
International Review of UK Research in Computer Science, Fred
B Schneider and Mike Rodd, Editors, EPSRC, BCS & IEE, 2001. Back
17
HEFCE circular 2003/42. Back
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