16 Jan 2018 The Voice: 2,900 New Tech-Related Post-Secondary Spaces Announced by Provincial Government Today
Today Melanie Mark, Minister of Advanced Education, Skills and Training, announced an increase in tech-related spaces in BC post-secondary institutions that will result in 1,000 additional grads each year from 2023.
This is great news for our province and our tech sector and what a way to kickoff 2018!
BC has the fastest growing tech sector in Canada. Technology employs 100,000 people directly and another 50,000 in tech roles in non-Tech companies. There are more people employed in technology in BC than in mining, oil & gas and forestry combined.
Access to talent has emerged as the single greatest barrier to growth for the province’s technology companies and for companies in all sectors that utilize tech to accelerate the growth of their businesses
Demand for technology grads in recent years has been strong – with between 5,000 and 10,000 entry level tech positions created each year. In contrast, there are only 2,000 to 2,500 tech graduates from BC’s post-secondary institutions each year.
The additional 1,000 graduates created by today’s announcement will have a major impact and we may even find in due course that further expansion is needed to keep up with BC’s fast-growing tech sector! Also confirmed today was a $200MM Provincial investment in tech and science related post-secondary capital projects over the next 4 years.
It’s an exciting time!
The Top 2 priority asks from BC Tech’s 2016 4-point plan are now delivered, two major wins that our BC tech ecosystem can be very proud of:
1 Completed October 2016: The launch of the $100M BC Tech Fund, an incremental investment in local VC managed by Kensington Capital Partners who appointed BC tech luminary Dr. Gerri Sinclair as Vancouver leader.
+Read more here.
2 Completed with today’s announcement. Match the $100M investment in venture capital with an incremental $100M in post-secondary to expand graduates of tech programs.
+Read more here.
At BC Tech we’re proud to be a part of a community that looks to the future and invests. Invests in growth, invests in potential and invests in people. We advocate strongly for our industry because our passion for Tech is matched by our passion for BC.
This is our home, and investing in education, innovation and green sustainable industries ensures our province’s economic growth and wellbeing for years to come.
At BC Tech, we’re all in.
-Jill Tipping, CEO & President of BC Tech.
Jill Tipping, President and CEO of BC Tech, Melanie Mark, Minister Advanced Education, Skills and Training