Scottish schools, colleges and universities yesterday came under pressure to do more to link their courses to employers' needs, and address the half of all vacancies that recruiters are having trouble filling.

Shonaig Macpherson, chairwoman of the Scottish Council Development and Industry (SCDI) opened its 37th annual forum last night with a plea to tackle the shortage of students in maths, science and engineering at every stage of education.

But she warned employers they have to do more too, and that if they do not increase the number of apprenticeships, "it is only a matter of time before the government introduces a compulsory levy and framework for training".

She warned also that larger firms should be careful not to "over-recruit", by employing all the best graduates but then failing to stretch them or use their skills to the full.

At Holyrood yesterday, a Labour challenge to the SNP Government to match the UK administration's commitment to more apprenticeship places met a response from Alex Salmond that it is important to focus instead on the quality of training. The First Minister claimed this is already above that of the rest of the UK.

At the SCDI forum in St Andrews, Macpherson said the lack of maths, science and engineering skills risks problems for several key sectors of the economy which need those skills in coming years, including oil and gas, food and drink, chemicals and manufacturing, with the latter showing prospects of creating more than 24,000 jobs over the next decade.

It could also pose a major problem for hopes of developing the renewable energy industry and carbon capture technology in Scotland, she said.

That could offer "huge worldwide exports for Scotland in years to come, but we will only exploit these opportunities if we provide the right further and higher education courses to attract bright people into these areas".

Macpherson cited the case of a bio-science business chief who told the Scottish Economic Forum recently that he can recruit biologists in Scotland, but found there is no course in Scotland that trains laboratory technicians to support his graduate staff, forcing him to recruit from Poland.

"Scotland has a wonderfully strong record on education, training and employment compared to the rest of the UK, but this is not translating into stronger productivity or more robust economic growth," said the SCDI chief.

"We need a better match between the often conflicting demands of learners, institutions and employers in the public, private and voluntary sectors.

"There will never be a perfect match between demands of learners, education resources and the requirements of employers. But surely we must try and optimise the economic return on the huge investment this country makes in education and skills each year, especially as we become an ever-greater knowledge-based economy."