March 15, 2024
The Government has announced new plans to improve the skills of more than 4,000 students in the technology of the future.
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Thousands more people across the UK will be able to transform future technologies such as artificial intelligence and sectors such as healthcare, 6G and quantum computing, thanks to a more than £1.1 billion package to upskill the country. They will receive training and certification in relevant technology.
At the Mathematics Summit held at the Science Museum in London on Tuesday 12 March, the Science and Technology Secretary set out plans to make the UK home to the world’s most skilled and well-trained workforce for the technologies of the future.
As part of these plans, the Science and Technology Secretary announced the biggest investment in engineering and physical science PhD programs in UK history – the highest university degrees.
More than £1 billion of funding from government, business, charities and academia will help us train more than 4,000 talented students at 65 PhD training centers across the UK, from Edinburgh to Bristol, to connect Britain’s brightest minds. to ensure that people have access to exciting opportunities to realize their ambitions close to home. .
The majority of opportunities are drawn from outside the South East of England, with Glasgow offering over 350 places, Edinburgh with over 300, Bristol with over 250 and Sheffield and Manchester with over 150 each.
This includes a center at King’s College, London, which trains researchers to revolutionize personalized surgery through advanced engineering such as microsurgical robots and chemical techniques that enable surgery to be performed ‘without the knife’. The University of Bristol is taking advantage of developments in digital technology. Chemistry, including artificial intelligence, helps develop new drugs such as antibiotics and cancer drugs.
Other countries will support vital technologies such as engineering biology, semiconductors, quantum technology and future telecommunications that give the UK a strategic advantage, build on our strength and are key to helping us grow our economy. .
This involves an additional investment of over £60m in a new quantum skills program which will run until 2034. This addresses the top priority for companies developing next-generation quantum technologies: access to the right skills and talent.
This includes £14 million for 100 quantum PhD students at universities across the UK, and a further £1,400 in funding for early career researchers through a competition that is open now and runs until 10 April. Includes 10,000 pounds.
It also includes £4 million to create further apprenticeship pathways to Quantum through a pilot scheme, enabling people from a range of academic backgrounds to enter the Quantum workforce.
This will drive economic growth and security by driving innovation that enables the UK to develop new medicines and materials, enhance machine learning and improve disease diagnosis and treatment.
Following the Prime Minister’s announcement of the £7.4m AI Skills Upgrading Fund, the Science and Technology Secretary will act ahead of an information webinar to encourage eligible small and medium-sized businesses in the professional and business services sector to register their interest in the scheme. issued a call to encourage The application process will begin in April and begin in May.
This pilot will help small and medium-sized enterprises unlock the opportunities presented by AI, develop future AI skills, and drive growth across the economy.
Together, these are the latest steps in the Government’s mission to help businesses realize the huge benefits of AI, which could increase the UK’s GDP by up to 10.3% by 2030.
Speaking at the Mathematics Summit, Science and Technology Secretary Michelle Donnellan said: ‘To further develop the skills system reform, it will take the work of all of us – universities, schools and businesses.
“By doubling down on investment in skills and supporting British businesses, we are laying the foundations for an economy fit for the future – one that creates jobs and improves the lives of communities at home and abroad.
“That’s how we succeed in our scientific and technological superpower mission.”
Further measures announced include:
• An academic consortium led by the University of Birmingham will establish a £4.5 million Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Technology Center of Excellence. This center, his RESILIENCE, includes a network of academic and non-profit partners who develop professional training and accelerator programs that provide vocational training opportunities for those with T-level qualifications to graduates. .
• Launch of competition to select delivery partners in March for our Science and Technology Venture Capital Fellowship program of up to £3m, announced in our Autumn Statement in November.
• The scheme aims to attract the world’s leading investors driving breakthrough advances in areas such as vaccines, AI and robotics, with 30 slots available as part of the pilot scheme.
• A new Future Telecommunications Skills Taskforce, involving stakeholders from government, academia and industry, will be launched to ensure the UK has skills for a connected future across people from all educational backgrounds.
The Department of Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) is expected to publish its responses shortly ahead of the publication of the final specifications and the launch of a short competition to identify organizations that will receive government support.
