Finding the perfect career for the youth

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BY EDGARDO J. ANGARA
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Friday, March 9, 2018
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IN 2017, the unemployed citizens totaled to about 2.4 million which translates to an unemployment rate of 5.7 percent. Of the 2.4 million unemployed, 31.8 percent have completed secondary education while 19.6 percent were degree holders or college graduates.[i]

In addition, Dr. Pablo Acosta of the World Bank during the 2017 Education Summit reported a high incidence of unemployment among more educated workers.

Acosta noted that of the new entrants to the labor market that are unemployed, 56 percent have received higher education. In fact, studies have shown that it can take 18 months to two years before new college graduates can land a job while high school graduates can take up to four years.

While the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) has been actively working to link the labor force with the jobs available through programs and initiatives such as the improved Phil-JobNet, Special Program for Employment of Students (SPES), Government Internship Program (GIP), and the JobStart, many of our educated youth are still struggling to find the perfect career. A significant factor is the mismatch of the available workers to the skills and experience required by the job.

The skills gap in the country will continue to be an issue especially in highly technical occupations and professions according to a 2015 study commissioned by JP Morgan from the Singapore Management University. In fact, these gaps will be more felt at the managerial and supervisory level or those in the “higher end of the value chain” and will be further aggravated by the outflow of our skilled workers to higher paying jobs abroad.

Another factor is the tendency of millennials to “job-hop.”In 2016, American-based research and consulting film Gallup revealed that the millennial generation – or those born between 1980 and 1996 – are less willing to stay in their current jobs with around 21 percent of them saying that they’ve changed jobs within the past year.  This, according to Gallup, is due to the low engagement of the generation in the workplace. In other words, many of the youth globally do not feel that their current occupation is worthwhile.

This is true in the Philippines as based on my personal experience and the similar experience of many heads of business enterprises, new graduates often stay with the company for only 6 months to two years. Many have also adopted a 9-to-5 work schedule while constantly in the lookout for better opportunities elsewhere.

While some argue that this is indicative of a new outlook in life for the younger, more fast-paced generation, the satisfaction that millennials get from their current career is a far more urgent concern that both the industries and educational institutions should look to address.

The challenge of finding the perfect career for our unemployed educated youth, as well as the challenge of helping industries incentivize the millennial workforce into putting more energy and engagement to their chosen careers can be addressed through a more proactive and strategic curriculum that has undergone consultations from both budding and established industries.

Universities cannot afford to have stagnant, non-dynamic programs. This has created an inefficient system which tends to produce more professionals than what is needed by the industries. There is a need for educational institutions to have strategic plans which should focus on both the core competencies of the students and the ever-changing demands of the job market.

To fully equip our youth, the curricula of educational institutions should be reviewed more frequently and with consideration to the present and emerging occupations. Through a more participative process of curriculum review, academic offerings can fill the gaps in competencies of graduates which will ensure higher chances of employment. (Email: angara.ed@gmail.com| Facebook & Twitter: @edangara/PN)

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