High marketability for community college, polytechnic students

KUANTAN: Graduates from community colleges and polytechnics are of high employability in the job market, says Higher Education Deputy Minister Datuk Dr Mary Yap Kain Ching.

She said this was based on last year’s record of 97.4 per cent of graduates from community colleges who managed to land jobs while 80 per cent of polytechnic students obtained employment.

“The Higher Education Ministry is proud with the high record of employability among graduates of community colleges and polytechnics in the country,” she told a press conference prior to the Polytechnics and Community Colleges Excellence Awards 2016 ceremony here Tuesday night.

Also present were Community College Education Department director-general Datuk Amir Md Noor.

Yap said the ministry was confident that by next year, the level of student marketability would reach 100 per cent by next year.

Currently, she added, there were 93 community colleges and 34 polytechnics nationwide offering various courses under the Technical Education and Vocational Training ( TVET) and the ministry projected more than 1.3 million jobs needed in the skills sector by 2020.

On the inaugural awards ceremony, she said it was to recognise and appreciate the polytechnic and community college outstanding students in their efforts to achieve excellence, and to become individuals of high quality in the real working world.

“This is in line with the ministry’s Higher Education Development Plan to produce more skilled graduates via TVET,” said Yap.

A total of 110 recipients, including students and administrative staff of community colleges and polytechnics nationwide, who excelled in various categories, namely academic, co- curricular activities and volunteerism were feted in the awards ceremony.

In the meantime, Amir said one of the outstanding successes of community college students in making Malaysia proud at international level was when a disabled student from the Selayang Community College clinched fifth placing to beat participants from 12 countries at the International Abilympics Competition.

The competition was the world’s largest skills competition featuring persons with disabilities. It was held in Bordeaux, France in March this year.

In addition, Amir said, there were two students — one from Ibrahim Sultan Polytechnic in Johor, and the other, from Syed Sirajuddin Polytechnic in Perlis — who were selected to represent the country at the World Skills Competition in Abu Dhabi next year. — Bernama