An outsourcing boost could be the outcome of recent e-skills reports highlighting a drop in UK IT students and a potential shortfall in technology professionals over the next five years, according to the National Outsourcing Association (NOA).

NOA chairman Martyn Hart, said “At present the IT industry is struggling to recruit the next generation to the profession, as the nerdish image of an IT worker puts off many youngsters from entering the industry. The IT industry may rectify this image but this is a long term project.”

Hart said a short term solution to the IT skills gap could be outsourcing and/or offshoring.

But recent Nasscom figures demonstrating one million graduate shortages in the Indian BPO industry - a figure which could increase with the growth of the country's domestic market - could point to trouble ahead for the outsourcing market.

However, Hart pointed to the three billion people in China that could be tapped into, and said the skills that need to be developed in the UK are IT management skills in order for organisations to properly manage outsourcing contracts.

Hart said the problem is that there is no way a person can gain a degree in outsourcing, and that the career path in the IT industry needs to be more structured.

Meanwhile IT training organisation Firebrand Training, which offers accelerated learning courses, has noticed a huge rise for its desktop support and administration courses.

Courses providing IT professionals with the basic hardware, software and networking skills are up 45 per cent, according to Firebrand.