After UG, what?

Sep 22, 2008 News

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By Rustom Seegopaul

The University of Guyana (UG) is turning out a number of graduates each year. However, many of these graduates have found themselves confounded as there seem to be no job placements for them and their newly acquired degrees.
The question on the lips of many of these fresh graduates is, “What’s next?”
There are approximately 1400 graduates being turned out of the seven faculties of UG on an annual basis. According to a source within the university’s administration, UG is doing its part by training, educating and certifying these graduates; preparing them for the world of work.
Absence of jobs for these graduates is apparently not an oversight of the university, which is fulfilling its side of it’s commitment to students by administering tertiary education to them.
A lecturer in the field of Governance and International Relations at UG, Frederick Kissoon, said he felt that the difficulty was not a ‘UG problem,’ but a national one. The problem, Kissoon believes, lies in planning, as some graduates are able to access jobs, while others are not.
Kissoon made it clear that he thought that too many graduates were being turned out in areas where they were not needed. At the same time, far too few degrees were being obtained in areas of skills which Guyana needs.
“We need to follow the example of other countries,” said Kissoon. “Programmes which the country is in need of need to be made more attractive.”
He is of the view that social sciences need to attract higher tuition fees than science and medical programmes, to motivate persons to take these programmes, which are in higher demand in Guyana.
One graduate of UG’s Pharmacy programme opined that one reason for the difficulty in finding jobs may be the fact that a lot of the fresh graduates lack work experience.
“Almost nowhere will take you on without some kind of experience, not a proper job anyways…and many of the courses do not have attachment programmes.” Due to this, she explained, it is difficult to acquire a job, unless you or a member of your family has some sort of connection or contact.
She noted that she was able to secure a job working as a pharmacist only because her family owns the pharmacy.
One businessman reiterated to this newspaper the importance of hiring persons with some amount of experience.
“Work experience, as menial as it may be, teaches you the discipline needed to function properly in a job later on in life.” He added that he does not hire persons unless they have had at least one year’s work experience.
Another UG student, who is geared to graduate soon, explained that he is worried that, after all the years of hard work, he will not be able to secure a job that will do his degree justice. “If I can’t get a decent job, then why did I bother to go to University?” asked the student. “I should have just started working right after CXC, like all of my friends did.”
The disgruntled young man said that most of his friends that begun working right after secondary school were now making in excess of $80,000. “I didn’t really want to go to UG, but everyone said a university degree is important. If I don’t find a job, then what am I supposed to do?” he said.
Echoing similar views, the President of the University of Guyana Student Society (UGSS), Jason Benjamin, affirmed that many of the university’s students were dissatisfied with the lack of jobs available when they graduate.
While not all of the courses offered at UG offer internship, even those which do still leave the students at a disadvantage, explained Benjamin.
This is due to the fact that the internship lasts for a short period of time, and most employers require years of work experience.
He noted that the UGSS was attempting to resuscitate the United Nation’s Volunteer Service. This programme would better help graduates to find job offers both in and out of Guyana.
Another problem Benjamin highlighted was the issue of accreditation. Not all of the courses offered at UG are widely accredited. This has motivated persons to only pursue studies locally as far as a diploma, and then pursue their degrees overseas.

Meanwhile, the Dean of the Faculty of Humanities of the University of Guyana, who is at the moment handling the public relations aspect of the University, Al Creighton, explained that UG was aware of the fact that graduates are encountering difficulties in finding jobs after they graduate.
According to him, there are three main reasons for this. He said that, firstly, students and potential students perceive that the courses which they enrol for would be in higher demand than they really were.
Secondly, Creighton said, the Guyanese economy cannot support all of the graduates. In effect, there are more job seekers than there are jobs, due to the economy being as small as it is. “If the economy was bigger and better developed, it would be easier for these graduates to get the jobs they are looking for.” Creighton said.
Lastly, Creighton reinforced what most persons have been saying – that graduates lack the work experience which most employers look for. In light of this, Creighton noted, UG trains its students in academics, rather than working in a company. Therefore, the responsibility to train employees further lies in the hands of the employers, he asserted.
To combat the large number of graduates who do not get jobs, Creighton said, a number of strategies are being considered. Among them was to again raise the bar for applicants to the various courses. The last time the bar was raised was two years ago, but this was done to improve the quality of the UG intake, rather than to reduce the number of successful applicants to the programmes.
Another strategy being considered for implementation is to increase the number of applicants to under-populated courses, while decreasing the number of applicants to over-populated ones. Many of the strategies have not been implemented and are still on the drawing board, said Creighton.
Meanwhile, Minister of Labour, Manzoor Nadir, admitted that there was a mismatch between jobs and graduates in Guyana. This happens not only at UG, he said, but is a problem throughout society. In this regard, the minister highlighted, there is no country in the world that could satisfy the entire job needs of its graduates, or unemployed.
The problem, the minister said, was the fact that many persons do not know what skills will be needed in years to come, so they do not always pursue courses which will be marketable in the future.
“We have to be able to project what skills will be in demand in the future,” noted the minister. He explained that, at the same time, persons should not just expect to graduate and immediately find the jobs they want. He said that it would likely take some time before the person found the ‘ideal job.’

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