Young Australians are among the least prepared around the world for the digital economy, according to a new survey by Infosys.
Young Australians are among the least confident around the world of their technical skills and job prospects, according to a new report by Infosys.
The survey involved 9,000 people aged 16 to 25 from Australia, China, India, the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, South Africa, and Brazil, with the goal of identifying their employment, skills, and education concerns.
The results found that 50% of young Australians are convinced that their education did not prepare them for what they expect from working life.
The report, Amplifying Human Potential: Education and Skills for the Fourth Industrial Revolution, also found that two-thirds of respondents said that technology had helped democratise educational opportunities for them, and that learning skills in science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields are a crucial part of the education process.
However, young Australians were the least confident of the countries surveyed regarding technical skills and job prospects.
In fact, less than a fifth had a desire to develop data skills, build mobile apps or learn how to code.
Further, only 3.41% said they wished to work for a startup, as opposed to a larger company.
Forty per-cent of respondents said that they believed their current job could be replaced by some form of automation within a decade.
Indeed, a recent report by the Committee for the Economic Development of Australia (CEDA) has predicted that up to 40% of jobs have a moderate to high likelihood of disappearing in the next 10 to 15 years as a result of technological advancement.
The HR service providers Davidson also recently found that less than 50% of Australian respondents said that their own set of skills prepared them for the world of work.
