KOTA KINABALU: The employability rate of polytechnic and community college (PolyCC) graduates should be assessed beyond mere percentage figures, with greater emphasis on whether graduates secure jobs that match their skills, offer quality career prospects and suitable incomes.
Higher Education Minister Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir (pic) reminded PolyCC not to rest on their laurels despite their graduates recording employability rates of more than 98% last year.
“What is more important is to ensure graduates secure jobs that match their skills, have good career prospects and earn good incomes.
“That is why the relationship between educational institutions and industry must evolve further.
“Industry needs to work with us from the curriculum development, training and certification stages through to employment opportunities,” he said at the Sabah Zone Polytechnic and Community College Convocation Ceremony at Kota Kinabalu Polytechnic here yesterday.
He said rapid technological advances in artificial intelligence, automation, robotics, green technology, cybersecurity and the digital economy had also altered the employment landscape and the skills required by industry, Bernama reported.
He said Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) was no longer a second choice, but had instead become one of the main career pathways for the country’s younger generation, with the TVET 2.0 Agenda emphasising high-demand future sectors such as AI, robotics and renewable energy.
As such, Zambry said the Ministry of Higher Education has made “PolyCC as the TVET Pioneer” one of the thrusts of the country’s higher education sector, reinforced by the Malaysia Higher Education Plan 2026-2035 and the Polytechnic and Community College Strategic Plan 2026-2035.
He said the PolyCC ecosystem currently comprised 36 polytechnics and 106 community colleges nationwide, with more than 100,000 students.
He also said that, in Sabah, the three polytechnics and nine community colleges played an important role in providing access to education and developing local talent.
He added that the TVET development agenda in Sabah was crucial to supporting the growth of the state’s economic sectors, including energy, oil and gas, tourism, modern agriculture, construction, the digital economy, logistics and the blue economy.
