Tech-voc grads land higher paying jobs

TECHNICAL-VOCATIONAL education and training (TVET) graduates, particularly those who went through a ladderized program, have equal if not better chances of getting hired in various industries, according to employment data from the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda).

Tesda Director General Joel Villanueva said that job profiles gathered by government researchers show that people with specialized training in technical and vocational skills have better and higher-paying employment opportunities in many industries all over the world.

He cited figures from the Department of Labor and Employment and state-run job website Phil-JobNet, which showed that the most in-demand jobs are in information technology (IT), business process outsourcing, domestic work and property consultancy.

Four industries that are expected to provide the most number of jobs this year are strategic farming and fishing, power and utilities, and renewable energy.

Villanueva said that one of the new “sunrise” job markets are in the animation industry, particularly in the Visayas, where Tesda has recently graduated 707 trainees.

“I am confident that all 707 graduates were molded and trained for various courses and specializations and are now ready to give quality and world-class service in all parts of the globe,” he told the graduates in his commencement speech at West Negros University in Bacolod City, Negros Occidental province.

“I congratulate West Negros University for this remarkable achievement. This is your institution’s significant contribution to filling up the requirements of companies engaged in engineering, business and management, allied health sciences, ICT, education and maritime studies,” Villanueva said.

West Negros University is one of Tesda’s partners in ladderized education, in which its trainees are given the opportunity to earn a college degree while learning skills at accredited Tesda centers.

The university offers courses in BS Hospitality Management, which credits the trainees’ courses in commercial cooking, bartending and housekeeping, and in BS Information Technology, which credits programming.

Other courses offered are computer hardware servicing, health care services and seafaring-catering/stewarding.

The Tesda chief vowed to improve his agency’s offering of technical vocational courses to produce graduates who can meet the demands of various industries.

“This year, the government has allotted more than P3 billion for technical education. As the demand for more skilled workers grows, we expect to need more than P5 billion in 2016,” he said.

Villanueva added that for 2012, the five sectors with the most number of TVET enrollees are tourism, information and communications technology, health services, construction industry and automotive skills.

Meanwhile, the January 2012 data of the Commission on Higher Education (Ched) revealed that the four disciplines with the most number of enrollees and graduates nationwide are business administration, medical and allied sciences, IT-related courses, and education and teacher-related training.

“The sad part is [that] 50 percent of all enrollees in the tertiary education belong to the so-called low priority disciplines. What is more regrettable is the dismal performance of graduates who take the Professional Regulations Commission examinations in education, nursing, midwifery and electrical engineering,” Villanueva said.

“Thus, the challenge is to stay relevant. Tech-voc courses are as dignified as college courses. What matters is that one becomes a specialist in his chosen course, find a job later on and deliver quality service,” he added.

West Negros University, one of the top 10 institutions with the highest number of registered Tesda programs, has received the ISO 9001:2000 certification for its BS Maritime Transportation and BS Marine Engineering courses.

Tesda also recently received the ISO 9001-2008 in recognition of its quality management systems in place and for putting premium in meeting the needs of its customers. –Francis Earl A. Cueto, Correspondent, Manila Times