Dundee & the Dundee Jobs Market
Dundee has successfully diversified from its traditional industries such as textiles to develop a thriving electronics sector. In particular, the city is renowned for its creative industries and expertise in digital media. Dundee is the regional centre for Tayside, an area with a population of 400,000 with the city itself has a population of 144,000.
Dundee and wider Tayside is home to the creators of some of the world’s best selling computer games. There are over 350 businesses operating in the area of digital media in Tayside, employing more than 2,300 people and generating a combined annual turnover well in excess of £100 million. The city’s residents and employees are reaping the benefits of a multi-million pound investment with a strong demand in the Dundee jobs sector for relevant skills within the IT and digital sectors, in particular.
The large-scale reinvigoration of Dundee as an ideal destination to live, work and visit continues – so there are plenty of opportunities for those looking to relocate. It doesn’t matter what day of the week it is, Dundee is a great city for nightlife, whether it’s nightclubs, pubs, gigs, cinemas or a great dining experience you seek.
Key Employers & Job Sectors in Dundee
The city has played host to the pioneers of aspirin, wireless telegraphy, manned flights, X-rays and adhesive postage stamps, to name only some of its innovative past. It was also once renowned for its “three Js” – jute (a natural fibre used in the textile trade), jam and journalism.
The future for Dundee looks equally as exciting as its past. Employment and business start-up rates continue to rise, while average earnings in Dundee are 4 per cent higher than the average Scottish figures. The key economic sectors include education, biotechnology, digital media, engineering, publishing, manufacturing, call centre/customer services, telecommunications, energy, tourism, electronics and life sciences.
More than £500 million is currently being spent on various capital projects within Dundee, including the innovative £270m waterfront development to re-connect the city centre with the River Tay, and work on the Dundee University campus.
Dundee is also famous for its computer games industry. It’s home to the some of the world’s most successful games development studios. Dundee companies have created top-selling titles such as smash hits State of Emergency and the Grand Theft Auto franchises. The University of Abertay is a leading light in the digital and creative media sector and is regularly ranked in the Financial Times top ten of most improved universities.
Leading employers in Dundee, including the main bio-sciences and technology sectors include, Alchemy Laboratories, Real Time Worlds, Axis-Shield plc, Dundee City Council, the Inland Revenue, Tesco, Cyclacel, Drug Development Solutions Ltd, GenTech Propagation, NCR Financial Solutions and PhotoSynergy.
In addition, the prestigious Al-Maktoum Institute for Arabic Studies is located in Dundee and has a “sister city agreement” with Dubai, aimed an encouraging greater dialogue between the two cities.
Living & Working in Dundee
But Dundee isn’t just a great city for job opportunities – there is plenty to see and do. Discovery Quay on Dundee’s waterfront tells the story of the research ship Discovery and its historic voyage to the Antarctic under the command of Captain Scott.
Verdant Works, the European Industrial Museum of the Year is located within a refurbished former jute mill in the city and shows what Dundee was like when it was the centre of the global textiles industry.
The Dundee Contemporary Arts centre has established an international reputation for excellence in the arts and attracts more than 300,000 visitors annually, while HM Frigate Unicorn – the oldest wooden-constructed warship still afloat, dating back to 1824 – is berthed at the city’s Victoria Dock.
It doesn’t matter what day of the week it is, Dundee is a great city for nightlife, whether it’s nightclubs, pubs, gigs, cinemas or a great dining experience you seek. At the West Port Bar, you’ll find live modern and traditional music, while Dundee's Caird Hall in the heart of the city is not only a hot spot for musical acts, but exhibitions of all types, and the Dundee Jazz Festival will take place in various venues from 1 to 3 June.
Shopaholics can visit the elegant, glass-fronted Overgate shopping centre and the Wellgate centre, which host numerous major department stores. Murraygate hosts high-street favourites such as Thorntons, Marks & Spencer, Tesco Metro and HMV, while City Quay is another shopping location of choice.
Dundee and its surrounding area has many visitor attractions including unspoiled highland glens, stunning rugged coastlines and a vibrant, cosmopolitan urban centre. Visitor attractions reveal Scotland’s roots from the earliest times through to the present day.
You can visit the ancestral home of the late Queen Mother at Glamis Castle, play golf at Carnoustie, get your fill of nature courtesy of Loch of Kinnordy Nature Reserve and the Montrose Wildlife Centre, and take in history at Arbroath Abbey.