Business school to offer digital qualifications

The University of Nottingham has launched a Digital Centre of Excellence to equip students with the skills needed to boost their employability and meet the digital skills shortage in the UK labour market.

Nottingham University Business School is working with two of the world’s leading business software providers, SAP and Microsoft, to provide students with the qualifications they need for an increasingly digital world.

It is offering internationallyrecognised Microsoft and SAP professional certifications either free or at significant discount to University of Nottingham students, which they can study alongside their degree.

Three-quarters of employers surveyed for the World University Rankings 2020 reported a shortage in digital skills, and 66% want to see graduates achieve professional qualifications as well as their main degree, according to the Chartered Management Institute.

Dr Andrew Callaghan, professor of strategy and digital transformation, said: “We are increasingly seeing the expectation from employers that graduates should be able to arrive on their first day with the digital capabilities necessary to work in a modern, often hybrid or remote working environment . To really get ahead, graduates will also need at least a working knowledge of technologies such as data, AI and cloud.

“The Digital Centre of Excellence is designed to help digitally futureproof our students and