Lifelong learning can help fresh grads gain employment

What it takes: Lifelong learning crucial to success. — 123rf.com

WITH machines, technology and artificial intelligence (AI) progressively disrupting jobs, it is crucial for everyone to embrace lifelong learning.

Reskilling and upskilling are especially important in light of the recent MIDF Research report which revealed that the youth unemployment rate in Malaysia was 10.7% last year.

In 2019, the youth unemployment rate was 9.9%.

Prof Mushtak: Students must have the ambition to continue to grow after graduation.

Stressing the importance of independent lifelong learning, Vice Chancellors’ Council for Private Universities Malaysia chairman Prof Mushtak Al-Atabi said acquiring such an ability requires an individual to have clear life and career goals, the motivation to pursue these goals, and the mindset that learning can happen beyond classrooms.

The availability of opportunities to develop knowledge and skills, said Prof Mushtak, who is also Heriot-Watt University Malaysia (HWUM) provost and chief executive officer, is also necessary for the individual to achieve his or her goals.

That is why learning will, and must, continue throughout our lives, he told StarEdu.

“Creativity, leadership, critical thinking and self-awareness are success skills that we need to continue to hone and improve beyond school and university.

“Students must have the ambition to continue to grow after graduation, and the mindset to embrace the willingness to continuously learn to remain relevant.

“This is achieved when we help students discover their life purposes, understand and appreciate their personal learning styles, and develop the aspiration to have a positive impact on the world,” he said.

Advising graduates who are struggling to get hired, Prof Mushtak noted that the job market is like any other market – it works through supply and demand, and is based on connecting different parties to exchange value.

“If graduates are marketing themselves and selling their services, they need to ask themselves, ‘Do I have the right knowledge, skills, attitude and behaviour that the market needs? Am I marketing myself in the most effective way?’“Most often, employers value self-motivated talents with the right mindset and the willingness to learn.

“And to stand out as a new employee, it is important that you understand the nature of your employer’s business, its vision, mission and customers’ needs.

“The key to success is to always add value and help others succeed – customers and colleagues alike,” he shared.

On Feb 27, Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin told Parliament there were 41,467 unemployed graduates in the country as of 2021.

The figure, from the Graduate Tracking Study System, made up 14.5% of the total of 286,299 local graduates who completed their courses that year.A fresh grad’s guide to success

> Dress and behave professionally, be punctual, and avoid gossiping. > Listen intently.

> Volunteer for projects to learn new skills and show initiative.> Seek a mentor to help you understand the business better and to have allies invested in your career development.

> Grab all training opportunities made available by your employer.Source: Vice Chancellors’ Council for Private Universities Malaysia