“Will technical jobs typically taken by polytechnic and ITE graduates be at risk amid a global focus on automation, robotics and artificial intelligence?”
That's the question that Non-Constituency Member of Parliament (NCMP) Leon Perera asked Senior Minister of State for Education Janil Puthucheary in Parliament on Tuesday.
The question followed Putucheary’s comments that fewer polytechnic and ITE graduates are employed full-time compared to 10 years ago due to a shift in the choice of employment among these graduates.
“Our preliminary analysis and information we have suggest that the trends are reflective of the behaviour and aspirations of students as well as opportunities that are being made available rather than a specific push as a result of factors described by the member,” Puthucheary said.
“But we will continue to study the matter to ensure whether there are factors we can address to benefit the students as best we can.”
The number of polytechnic and ITE graduates in full-time permanent employment fell from 77% in 2007 to 58% in 2016.
In contrast, the number of graduates who choose to go into freelance, part-time and temporary work has gone up, he said.
“About half of the decrease is due to students choosing to do part-time work while they prepare for further studies,” Puthucheary said elaborating on the figures.
The other half of the decrease is due to graduates choosing not to engage in full-time permanent work.
“They could be doing freelance work or have other reasons to lead them to choose to work part-time or take up temporary employment,” he said.
Still, he said the employment rate has remained high. Apart from fluctuations due to the performance of the economy and job market, Puthucheary said around nine in 10 graduates found jobs.
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