Seen as a “conversion” degree, it gives them a deep understanding and specialisation in a discipline that will make them, undoubtedly, stand out against the thousands of graduates pouring on to the job market. The response has been incredible.”Unlike the MBA, recent graduates with a good degree (2:1 or above) in any subject can take a Masters. But for those who haven’t yet reached that level, the opportunity to excel in a single discipline is a far better – and faster – way of climbing the career ladder.Leeds University Business School now offers several of these courses, including an MSc in International Marketing Management. “We were aware there was a demand for this type of course,” says John Hillard, Director of Taught Postgraduate Programmes “We were having to turn people away from the MBA and marketing is a hot area. A potential problem of MBAs, they explain, is that the range of topics covered tends to be broad which means the depth of study into individual disciplines can be limited For those about to enter senior management, this is ideal.

The good news? An increasing number of business schools are setting up an alternative of a one-year full-time Masters degree in a specialised subject. Popular examples include business and management, and marketing. Their message is that MBAs are no longer the be all and end all.
Advocates of these Masters courses claim there are particularly beneficial to graduates. The bad news is, however, that business schools claim more and more of these applicants simply don’t have the experienced required – a minimum of two years in business. During the last decade there has been a four-fold increase in applications nation-wide. But in fact, we follow all projects through from start to finish.

That requires excellent inter-personal skills as well as being able to work well in a team – two things which women are often found to be very good at.”If you’re entering IT for the big bucks, it’s worth noting that salaries in Greater London are around 25 per cent above those in the rest of the UK and that the highest salaries of all are reported in the Finance and Business Service sectors.. So you want to do an MBA? After all, the MBA has a reputation of being an essential entry ticket into the world of senior management. “But we are desperately trying to increase that.”Tessa Addison, 23, who didn’t plan on a career in IT whilst at university but joined Barclays Capital last year, says, “It’s my experience that a lot of women don’t apply for computing careers because they think it’s about staring at a screen all day. The training course lasts between 18 months and two years, with fast-track opportunities for those who reveal technical excellence. “At the moment, only 15 per cent are women,” confesses Tazmin Walker, the manager of campus recruiting division. “There’s no doubt about it – huge strides are being taken in terms of equal opportunities in IT.”This year, Barclays Capital are recruiting 80 graduates for IT jobs, from all degree disciplines. “Some companies are insisting on equal recruitment of men and women,” he says.

After all, there were only 25 per cent of women in the department. But the lack of women is something everybody wants to change.”Peter Poulain, a partner in A&P Computer Services, which places permanent and contract staff, claims he has noticed a sudden surge in the number of female graduates seeking a career in IT. This, he believes, is partly due to the increase in advertising campaigns aimed solely at women. But Lloyds’ advertisement for IT sounded exciting so I thought I’d give it a shot My one concern, though, was about prejudice. In fact, we actually prefer training graduates ourselves because it means we can give them the range experience that we want them to have, and teach a lot of people at the same time.”Mr Mulligan believes women are under-represented in IT largely because they assume their low numbers mean they must be subject to discrimination – “but anyone in IT will tell you that’s a myth”.Shonal Patel, a 22-year-old graduate who joined the IT team of Lloyds TSB last summer, agrees: “My degree course focused on management and I decided to go into marketing. “What’s more, they’ll miss out on some of the most competitive graduate salaries around.”
The most common misconception that turns female graduates off IT, claims Martin Thorne, president of AGCAS (Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services) is that a degree in computer science is prerequisite. “Since four out of five computer science graduates are male, it’s no wonder women think they don’t stand a chance,” he says.

“The reality is, however, that most of the larger companies are willing to take people with any degree discipline and train them accordingly.”Brian Mulligan, managing director of Easynet, a telephone company and Internet service provider, explains: “Provided you have some experience – even if it’s a case of having been involved in setting up a website while you were at university – we’re interested. “If women don’t start entering IT a lot quicker than they are, they’ll get left behind in what is today’s fastest growing industry,” explains a spokesperson. But according to graduate recruiters, it’s high time that perception changed. After all, new research from the National Computing Centre shows that a staggering 60 per cent of companies expect to increase their employment of IT staff over the next two years. Picture, in your mind, an office full of graduates who work in IT The chances are that your image is predominantly male. Unlike many postgraduate courses, the majority of applicants do not have to pay a course fee, and there are financial incentives to attract teachers in to certain subjects (which are means tested).Noel Mackan cannot imagine a job that he would enjoy more: “I love working with children, I love literature, I love the creativity of children.”The teaching information line: 01245 454 454, or www.teach-tta.gov.uk/teach. Teachers comment on the delight at finding a child grasp a task that they have been struggling with for a while The pay is also not as low as some people assume.