Investment in training for South Wales’ Compound Semiconductor sector

Cardiff Capital Region (CCR) and the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) investing in skills development for South Wales’s Compound Semiconductor sector.

The growth in this exciting sector is essential in enabling new and innovative technologies such as 5G, driverless cars, the Internet of Things (IoT), and Artificial Intelligence (AI) and supporting sustainability and the net zero agenda.

This new investment – part of CCR’s Cluster Development and Growth Programme – aims to help tackle skills shortages and create new talent pools for in-demand jobs.

Places are available free of charge to individuals who wish to receive training in:

• Cleanroom Protocols* – a one-hour online course that provides an overview of what it is like to work in a cleanroom environment for nanoscale production
• Compound Semiconductor Electronics* – a blended course consisting of 3.5 hours of online learning materials followed by a 2.5 hour practical session that provides (or enhances) knowledge of compound semiconductor electronics technology and its applications
• Compound Semiconductor Photonics* – a 3.5 hour online course that provides (or enhances) knowledge of compound semiconductor photonics technology and its applications

The training is primarily aimed at individuals working in the semiconductor sector who wish to upskill their knowledge, or individuals looking to re-skill into this growing sector. However, it is also relevant for those who support the sector (such as teachers and lecturers) as well as recent graduates aiming to enter the jobs market.

Cardiff University has developed the training courses in partnership with South Wales’s compound semiconductor cluster (known as CSconnected), the world’s first compound semiconductor cluster. Learning materials draw on the expertise of the University’s Institute for Compound Semiconductors.

Anyone interested in studying this suite of training courses should visit Cardiff and Vale College website. A limited number of free places are available. There are no formal requirements, but eligible applicants must be 18+ and live or work in the Cardiff Capital Region, which includes Bridgend, Blaenau Gwent, Caerphilly, Cardiff, Merthyr Tydfil, Monmouthshire, Newport, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Torfaen and the Vale of Glamorgan,

*These training courses have been developed as part of CSconnected Strength in Places Fund (SIPF), a 55-month project with a total value of £43 million, supported by £25 million of government funding provided through UK Research and Innovation’s flagship Strength in Places Fund.