TESDA to provide more trainings

MANILA, Philippines - Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) director general Joel Villanueva assured the public that the agency will work harder to continue providing quality and relevant training, particularly under the Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) program.

Villanueva gave the assurance after employers showed high satisfaction of TVET graduates based on the 2011 Employers Satisfaction Survey (ESS).

Villanueva said the ESS serves as one of the agency’s monitoring and feedback mechanisms to generate inputs and comments from industries on the performance of the TVET programs.

The survey, conducted in more than 5,000 establishments, revealed that a high percentage of establishments (86.1 percent) said that they are either “very satisfied” (43.3 percent) or “somewhat satisfied” (42.8 percent) with the work and performance of the graduates.

The employers also stated that they will continue to hire technical vocational graduates.

A total of 5,451 public and private establishments that employed TVET graduates in the last three years – from 2009 to 2011 – were polled for the ESS.

“If the employers are happy, then our graduates must be really good,” Villanueva said, referring to the 2011 ESS.

“We want our students to feel they made the right choice in engaging in TVET programs because these can offer them a rewarding career,” he said.

The 2011 ESS showed that 92 percent of the graduates possessed the theoretical and practical knowledge in performing their tasks at work, were highly trainable for the skills needed for the job, and have a positive work attitude.

For their 2012 operations, the establishments identified the following in-demand occupations: mason, welder, plumber, electrician, carpenter, computer service technician, consumer electronics service technician, auto mechanic, food and beverage service worker, heavy equipment operator, security guard, housekeeper, driver, beauty care, hairstylist, and rigger.

To further improve the quality of TVET graduates in the country and meet the needs of the industries, they said that there is a need for more in-depth training and exposure of the students on their chosen course and improvement in their communication skills.

The establishments surveyed also proposed training program for unskilled workers of local government units to offer them similar employment opportunities.

They also said that technical vocational training programs should be more accessible, especially to far-flung communities in the country.