Vocational education finds solutions to increase students’ job opportunity

One year ago, student Cao Minh Dat in Ho Chi Minh City’s District 5 decided to study in a vocational training school despite his good academic performance. After years searching for information, Dat understood after three-year learning, students of Chu Van An school will hold both literature certificate and intermediate vocational diploma.

Similarly, Tran Hoang Thu Thuy in Binh Thanh District shared after graduating from her junior high school, she decided to learn vocational training course in combination with literature learning. In addition to literature learning like her peers in normal schools, Thuy is pursuing the course of Kitchen- Cuisine in Viet Giao Vocational School.

Studying in the Ho Chi Minh City Conservatory of Music, Bui Vu Nguyet Minh decided to enroll in the local continuous learning center to complete the literature program.

Mentioning the admission of the academic year 2020-2021, Director of Chu Van An Vocational Training Center Do Minh Hoang revealed more than 300 students enrolled in each year within three recent years; many of students with good academic performance have registered to learn in the center. The rate of graduates in the center this academic year is higher than the prior year; for instance, it was 99.6 percent in the academic 2019-2020. The rate of graduates increases by 30 percent-40 percent year by year.

According to the HCMC Department of Education and Training’s statistics, nearly 20,500 students have been pursuing courses in 33 continuous learning centers and vocational training centers for the academic 2019 – 2020. These students will be highly skilled workforce to meet the labor market and enterprises’ demand of qualified workers.

To satisfy students’ expectation of both learning literature and vocational education, continuous learning centers have actively cooperated with vocational training centers. Truong Ba Hai, Director of a continuous learning and vocational training center in District 10 said that literature and vocational education combination have been greatly supported by parents and students because students can both complete literature education program and receive vocational training of electricity, IT, cooking.

Realizing that students and their parents prefer to choose a school with combination of literature and vocational training, a continuous learning center in District 9 has been cooperating with Dong Sai Gon Vocational Training School to organize literature and job course for 200 students.

However, Tran Anh Tuan, Deputy Director of the Institute of International Economics Training and Research, said that there has been remaining in the vocational training in term of policies and mechanisms for development of literature and job teaching. Moreover, sorting out of students is not as good as expected. Last but not least, vocational training centers are competing unhealthily causing difficulties for students to choose schools of their choice.

Mr. Tuan concluded that educators should make students understand which job is suitable with the ability and meet the labor market’s demand. People will receive high salary if they are highly skilled workers with good responsibilities for their jobs. On the other hand, the education sector should work with related agencies to expand the combination of literature and vocational training so that students can hold certificate of literature and start to work for earning living.