The Borneo Post

SMC able to act as intermediary between varsities, industry players

SIBU: Sibu Municipal Council (SMC) intends to act as an intermediary between universities and industry players towards paving the way for more interactions by which information can be channelled to students wanting to pursue educational courses that ate relevant to the job market here.

This was pointed out by SMC chairman Clarence Ting when met by reporters after receiving a courtesy call by a delegation from Taiwan’s Chang Jung Christian University (CJCU) led by its president Prof Dr Lee Yung Lung, yesterday.

In relation to this, Ting said many parents were lamenting about their children not being able land any job here after graduation, and thus, they became reluctant to return to Sibu.

In this regard, he opined that the link between the industry players and universities is pivotal towards providing the necessary information to enable students take up courses relevant to the industries’ needs here.

“I believe the parents need to take more interest in what their children are studying and to know what is lacking (job opportunities and demands) in Sibu.

“They (parents) always say their children cannot find employment after graduation and so, they don’t want to come back to Sibu. But if you’re to ask the ‘big bosses’ (established companies) in Sibu, they’re actually complaining about not being able to find people with the required skills.

“It seems that right now, there is a lack of interactions between the companies and the universities.

“Actually in Sibu right now, what we need is those with professional skills; if SMC could take the lead (as an intermediary) for the universities and the private sector, then we can tell the people what is needed (in the job market),” said Ting.

In this respect, he pointed out that it did not matter where the students had gone to study.

“What’ important is that they need to study something that is useful in Sibu and then, the opportunity to find a job in Sibu would become better. That is the ultimate goal.”

In responding to Ting’s call, Lee said his university could play such a role like establishing a hub to link the institution with enterprises.

“The university can provide the necessary skills for social demands, while the enterprise can make a very successful business for society development. I think the university can play a very good role here; I would like to bring our students (from Taiwan) to study here, and to have the students (in Sibu) study in Taiwan too,” he said.

When asked further about the linking hub, Lee described it as a platform for university students and enterprises in knowledgesharing, information gathering and also providing feedback.

“We can hold events and do some surveys as means to provide information to both the students and the enterprises,” he said.

The courtesy call was also attended by CJCU’s division chief-office of administration Wang Pei-Yin and international consultant Dato Thomas Tieng.

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2022-12-06T08:00:00.0000000Z

2022-12-06T08:00:00.0000000Z

https://epaper.theborneopost.com/article/281724093580634

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