Few part-time jobs on offer, universities say
HEADS OF UNIVERSITIES LIST EMPLOYERS’ LACK OF AWARENESS AMONG CHALLENGES IN HIRING STUDENTS FOR PART-TIME WORK IN FREE ZONES
More than 18 months after a new law allowed university students to take up part-time jobs in nine free-zone clusters, the scheme has found few takers mainly due to a lack of awareness among employers, universities said yesterday.
In interviews on the sidelines of the 30th Gulf Education and Training Exhibition (Getex) at Dubai World Trade Centre, they said there was confusion among employers about being able to legally hire students in part-time jobs and they were also unclear about the benefits of hiring them.
Dr Vajahat Hussain, chief executive officer of Amity University Dubai, said while they have introduced a 20-hour programme, ‘Work as you Learn’, and some students have been hired by retail and IT companies, he believes there should have been more progress. “The challenge is more of the awareness on the part of the companies because we as a university are aware and the students are too, but more companies need to know they can hire students as part-time employees legally,” he said.
Employers confused
He said companies also lack patience in taking students without experience or skills and prefer to outsource jobs. “However, we believe, in the next couple of years, it will pick up and companies will see the benefits of getting students on part-time jobs.”
According to him, the parttime job rule has worked mainly as a magnet in attracting international students to the country.
Employers are not clear about the exact arrangements with regard to part-time jobs, according to Niranjan Jayakumar, vice-president and business head, Manipal University.
“We have been sending students who are interested in taking up part-time jobs, but what we have seen is that there is some confusion that students cannot be employed when on student visas and employers then ask us for NOC for employment which we cannot give. Those kinds of policyrelated questions are there and since the guidelines are new, more visibility need to be brought in the guidelines and rules,” he said.
Also, work-study balance on the part of students is another challenge that could be putting off employers. Students pursuing full-time courses have classes during day and very few jobs are available in the evening.
“Because of the options on part-time jobs, we have seen a growth of 50 per cent in international students coming to study with us and the interest to earn while they learn comes from them. For some students, it’s the question of balancing academic knowledge, while employers expect students to be doing the activity full-time,” said Jayakumar.
Suitable jobs and timings
Dr Cedwyn Fernandes, director at Middlesex University, said while the rule is good to have, one of the reasons it has not picked up is because the type of part-time jobs students seek are not really available at companies.
“It’s still in its early days, I think. Undergraduate students at our university have not been interested because of time constraints, but the issue is not always with the students but more with employers because they are not sure if the students are available as they want them to be available whenever they want,” he said.
Professor Ammar Kaka, viceprincipal, Heriot Watt University, said the university has attracted 100 Chinese students since the rule was announced. “I see the challenge in terms of restricting the opportunities for students to work only in free zones. There are companies interested in being part of the education system of the new generation, but it’s not happening to a big extent,” he said.