EDITORIAL: Opening doors for graduates

Graduation season is upon us. Thousands have achieved educational milestones through hard work and dedication. As the graduates of 2010 leave high schools and colleges armed with diplomas, certificates and degrees, they are in search of the next opportunity for advancement. Their eyes are usually set on one of three possibilities: employment, further studies or entrepreneurship.

The sun is supposed to shine brightly on these young achievers as they set out to expand their horizons. The confident strides that a graduate makes as he collects that all-important certification says here is someone who loves learning, who values hard work and whose self-discipline will take him forward. However, the journey ahead is sadly daunting because there appear to be fewer and fewer employment opportunities in the country as private-sector companies cut back and public-sector jobs disappear in the face of severe budgetary pressures. All too often, these once-confident steps are halted.

It is a fact that every new graduate faces stiffer, stronger competition in a weak economy. Whatever the field of study, from theology to law, it is not easy to find a job. And even with the greatest tips on how to burnish their résumés, there are thousands of young people who remain jobless many months after graduation. Some who wish to take on higher studies cannot afford the tuition and must overcome too many hurdles to get a loan. They often become frustrated and feel let down by the system.

development stymied

Because many of these graduates cannot find a way to transfer their skills to the workplace, the country's development is stymied, for the basic mission of education is to equip persons with the requisite skills so they can contribute to the development of society. A strong intellectual, skills-based workforce has to be recognised as the bridge to a prosperous future for Jamaica.

What role should the Government then be playing in trying to open windows of opportunity for these unemployed graduates?

We submit that the creative minds in Government, with the help of the private sector, need to come together to examine the difficulties and design a programme or programmes that will offer to some of these graduates the experience they seek or give them credit as they move to engage in higher studies.

The usual job fairs are never able to place everyone. So a way has to be found to open new options to our graduates. We believe that with the current emphasis on inner-city renaissance, that very real opportunities exist for creative persons to use their skills to revitalise life in some of these communities. Given the unacceptably high levels of domestic violence, we can think of mediation as one area that could benefit from the intervention of enthusiastic, young graduates working under the guidance of experts.

And in the area of agriculture, perhaps the new technology learnt by students could be applied to agriculture to help farmers attain higher yields by using improved methods. But these are simply suggestions; the experts must move purposefully to devise meaningful work programmes that can absorb some of these skills.

Investment in graduates is what is needed to stimulate Jamaica's economic recovery. If we lose our enthusiastic graduates to other countries, who will be left to provide long-term economic development, or political and cultural leadership?

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