CausesunemploymentinMalaysia

2.1Lackofexperience
Nowadays,theemployerwillfindtheworkerwhohadalotofexperiencedonecomparedtotheone
withoutexperience.Lackofexperienceandskillsarealsocausesofgraduateunemployment.
Generally,mostorganizationsprefertoemploygraduateswithexperience.Furthermore,inMalaysia,
theprivatesectortodayisnotinterestedinrecruitinglocalgraduatesbecausetheylackessentialskills,
suchasproficienyinEnglishandinterpersonalskills(NorHartini,2007).Thereappearstobea
disparitybetweenwhatemployersrequireandwhatskillsgraduateshave.Inviewofthis,the
governmenthasimplementedseveralmeasurestoreducetheproblemofgraduateunemployment.One
suchmeasureistheintroductionofseveralTrainingprogrammesforfreshgraduates.Forinstance,the
MinistryOfHumanResources,throughtheirtrainingagencies,hasintroducedthe'Unemployed
GraduatesTrainingScheme'inordertoequipgraduateswithcertainskillsandexperience(Chapman,
Chew&Tan,2007).TheDomesticTradeandConsumerAffairsMinistry,likewise,hasinitiateda
programmewhereestablishedretailershavestartedrecruitinggraduateanddiplomaholdersas
managementtrainees.Thisschemeaimstonotonlyprovideemploymentopportunitiesforfresh
graduatebutalsotoexposethemtofieldsintheprivatesectorotherthantheonestheyspecializedin
(Chin,2007).
Anothermeasureinvolvesareviewofthetertiaryeducationsystem.SoftskillDevelopmentshouldbe
incorporatedintotheeducationcurriculumwherestudentscanparticipateinextracurricularactivities
toenhancesoftskillssuchaspersonalqualities,interpersonalskillsand,criticalandcreativethinking
(NorHartini,2007).Thesesoftskillsshouldbeacquiredthroughparticipationinextracurricular
activitieswhiletheyarestudyingfortheirdegrees.Alecturer,forinstance,candevelopstudents'skills
andknowledgebystimulatingtheirmindswithdiscussionsandcasestudies.AccordingtoNor
Hartini,theseskillswillenablethemtocommunicateeffectively,managerelationships,leadteam,
solveproblemsandsucceedinthejobmarket.Thus,itisevidentthatlackofskillsandexperienceare
themaincausesforgraduateunemployment.Toovercomethisproblem,theMinistryofHigher
Educationmustensurethatthetertiaryeducationsystemisrelevantanduptodate.Itshould
continuallyevaluatethetertiaryprogramstohelpproducequalitygraduateswhomeettheneedsof
industries.Alsoindustriesneedtoplaytheirpartbyprovidingmoreopportunitiesfortrainingfresh
graduateswhilethegraduatesthemselvesneedtobemoreopenandtakeuptheseoffers.
2.2Lackofsocialandcommunicationskill
Manyemployerscitedlackofnecessarycommunicationskills,poorcommandofEnglishandlackof
confidenceduringinterviewshadledtoincreasingnumberofunemployedgraduates.Donsaid
communicationskillsandlanguageproficiencywerebestacquiredthroughconstantpractice.
AccordingtotheMinisterofHumanResources,morethan65%offemalegraduatesinthiscountry
areemployedbecausetheylacksocialandcommunicationskillsinadditiontoapoorcommandof
languageandlowlevelsofselfconfidence.Headdedthatmanyfemalegraduateshadachieved
excellentacademicresultsbutcouldnotsecureemploymentwithouttherelevantskillsrequiredinthe
labormarket.Thenumberofunemployedfemalegraduatesisalsomuchhigherincomparisonmale
graduates(TheStar,2005).Ithasbeenassumedthatthelackofexperienceandskillsarethecauses
leadingtotheunemploymentofgraduate's.InMalaysia,theprivatesectortodayisnotinterestedin

recruitinglocalgraduatesbecausetheylackseveralimportantskills,suchasthecapacityto
communicatewellinEnglish,alackofICTproficiency,andalackofinterpersonalskills.This
scenariorevealsthat,thereisaskillsgapbetweenwhatskillsarerequiredbyemployersandwhat
skillsgraduateshave.Suitabledegreeprogramsarenottheonlymechanismsfordevelopingwork
skillsinhighereducation.Studentsareencouragedtotakepartinextracurricularactivitieswhichmay
assistthemindevelopingsoftskills.Itisimportantforastudenttobeginaccumulatingasmuchwork
relatedexperience(softskills)asearlyastheycan.Softskillsaregenerallycategorizedintothree
areas;character,interpersonalskillandcriticalandcreativethinking.Theseskillsenableoneto
communicateeffectively,managerelationships,leadateam,andsolveproblems.Softskill
developmentshouldbeinculcatedintotheeducationsyllabus.Itisimportanttoteachsoftskills
requiredtosurviveandsucceedintheworkmarket.
AccordingtotheDearingReport(NCIHE,1997)theprimarypurposeofhighereducationisto
preparestudentsfortheworldofwork.Graduatesneedtobegivenopportunitiestodevelopgeneric
attributesbesidesdisciplinaryknowledge.Genericattributesincludecommunicationskills,problem
solvingskills,computerliteracy,informationliteracy,abilityandwillingnesstolearn,andteamwork.
Previousresearchconductedongraduateemploymentaddressedgenericcompetenciesasskills,
abilitiesandattributesthatcomplementthefieldofspecializationofemployeesforworkperformance
(Day,1988;Sandberg,1991;Sohal,1997;&Mitchell,2003citedinQuek,2005).Itwasnotedthat
employerspreferworkerswhohadgenericcompetencieslikeinterpersonalskills,andleadership
skills,teamwork,oralandwrittenskills(Leeetal,2001,citedinQuek,2005).Mostacademiain
Malaysiafeelthattheeducationsystemisonlyconcernedwithresults.Thesearetheprocessesin
TeachingandLearning,andpartoftheprocessisthewaytheassessmentstrategiesaredesignedand
whethertheinstructionalstrategiesandthestudentslearningexperiencecompensatewithwhatthe
courseisdesignedfor.Itwasagainreportedthattherewereplentyofjobsbutmanygraduatescannot
fitintothepositionsbecausetheylackedthenecessaryskills(languageandcommunicationskills)that
theirprospectiveemployerswerelookingfor.ThisviewissupportedbytheHigherEducation
MinistryofMalaysia(HEMM),thatunemploymentamonggraduatesisduetothelackofgeneric
competenciesinundergraduatesprogram;therewaslackofapplicationofclassroomlearninginthe
tertiaryeducationtotheworkplaceperformance.InaresearchconductedbyMcHardyandHenderson
(1994),aknowledge/skillsmatrixwasdeveloptofacilitatethegapthatmightoccurinthetransition
ofknowledgeandskillsduringwhichthestudentsareundergoingtheirprocessoflearning.The
matrixhashelpededucatorstoseethechangesthatneedtobemadetothepedagogictechnique
(lectures,presentation,andtutorialactivities).Theintegrationofcreativityintobusinesseducation
aidsstudentsinpreparingforthecreativeworkplaceenvironmentsthatarebecomingmorecommon
asorganizationsseektodevelopcreativecompetenciesasoneoftheirfewsustainablecompetitive
advantagesintodaysmarketplace(Driver,2001).Adegreealoneisnotenoughtosucceedintodays
competitivejobmarket.InasurveyreportedbytheBBC,fouroutof10largeemployersintheUnited
Kingdomstruggledtofillgraduatevacanciesbecauseofashortageofapplicantswiththerightskills.
AnotherstudydonebyMonashUniversityinAustralia,showedthatmorethanonethirdofforeign
studentsgraduatedfromAustralianuniversitieshadverypoorEnglishskills(Azizan,2007).
Accordingtothestudy,allgraduatestestedhadenoughcommandofthelanguagetocopewithmost
situationsbutwerestillnotcapableofconductingasophisticateddiscourseataprofessionallevelThe
studyreportedthat23.5%ofstudentsfromMalaysiadidnotmeettherequiredEnglishstandard.

2.3EducationinMalaysia.Choosingthewrongcourseandthepoorresult
InaMalayMailarticleyesterday,itwashighlightedthatasubstantialportionoftheregistered66,000
unemployedgraduatesarefromsomeofthemostpopularcourses.Businessadministration,computer
andinformationtechnology,andengineeringarethemostsoughtaftercoursesbymanyschool
leavers.Thishasresultedinahighnumberofunemploymentamonggraduatesfromthesedisciplines
19,900businessadministrationgraduates,9,500fromcomputerandinformationtechnology,and
7,500engineeringgraduates.Whileitmaynothavebeenintended,thearticlemayhaveinadvertently
sentthemessagetoprospectiveuniversitystudentsthattheabovecoursesaretobeavoidedduetolow
demandfortheirskillspostgraduation.I'dliketostatethatthiswillprobablybeawrong"read"ofthe
abovestatistics.
Firstofall,whilethenumberofgraduatesunemployedfromthesecoursesarethehighest,thearticle
didnotgiveanystatisticsonproportionofcandidatesfromeachofthesefacultiesareunemployed.
Thisinformationwillbekey,asgiventhattheabovecoursesarethelargestfacultiesinthe
universitiesinMalaysia(oreveninclusiveofoverseasuniversities),thenobviouslythelikelihoodwill
betheabsolutenumbersofunemployedfromthesefacultieswillbelargestisveryhigh.Fore.g.,the
numberofstudentstakingB.Sc.Chemistryprobablydonotexceed2,000studentsintheentire
Malaysiaperannum,andwillhencenevermakeittothetopunemployedlist,even*if*possiblyupto
50%ofthemremainunemployed.
Secondly,apointwhichIwillfurthercommentinsubsequentblogentries,manyofthestudentsof
thesecourses,particularlythoseinITandEngineeringshouldnothave"qualified"forthesecoursesin
thefirstplace.ItismyopinionthatmanyofthestudentsfromSTPM/SPMwhohavebeenaccepted
intothesecoursesintheMalaysianuniversities,shouldneverhavequalifiedforthesecoursesinthe
firstplace.Theentrylevelofthecoursesinsomeofthelocaluniversitieshasbeensetsolow,that
thesepoorstudentswillneverhaveachancetoperformcrediblyinthesecoursesresultingintheir
unemploymentstatus.Fore.g.,I'veseenmanymanygraduateswillverypoorresultsinMathematics
(andAdditionalMathematics)inSPM/STPMbutqualifiedforthesecourses.Withapoorfoundation
inMathematics,itwouldhavebeenbetterforthesecandidatestohavetakenothercourseswhichthey
mayhaveperformedbetter.Withoutgivingunduedisrespecttotheweakercandidates,ifyoudon't
haveatleastaB4foryouradditionalmathematicsforSPM,avoidEngineeringorComputerScience
courses!InSingapore,therequirementsareevenhigherwithcandidatesacceptedintothesecourses
onlyiftheyhaveaminimum"B"gradefortheFurtherMathematicsin'A'Levels.
Furthertothesecondpointabove,thecoursesinComputerScienceandEngineeringinmanyofthe
localuniversitiesarealreadyverylackinginacademicrigour.Withalargenumberofcandidates
graduatingwithCGPAsbelow3.0,itisunsurprisingthatthislotbecomes"unemployable"inthe
Malaysianprivatesector.Thebottomlineis,studentsshouldpickcoursesbasedontheircapabilities
andnotbasedonwhat'sapparently"indemand"outthere(e.g.,ITcourses).Ifyouarenotcutoutfor
ITorEngineering,puttingyourselvesthroughthecoursesisnotgoingtomakeyoumoreemployable
intheITorEngineeringmarkets.IcantestifythatthereisashortageofITcandidatesinMalaysia,
andweneedmorecapableITstaff.However,thatdoesnotmeanthatwe'llemployanybodywho
receivesapieceofdegreepaper(nomatterhowbadhisgradesareabilitiesare).
I'vejustcompletedyesterday,ajobinterviewwithacandidatewithadegreeinMultimediafroma
localprivateuniversity.Fromafairlycandiddiscussionwithregardstothedegreecoursecontentand
thecandidatesjobprospects,ithasencouragedmetowriteaboutanissuethathasbeenonmymind

forawhilethe"neitherherenorthere"degreecourses.Togiveabitofbackground,intheinternet
andmultimediaindustrytoday,therearetypically2typesofcandidatesemployersarelookingfor
(1)thecomputerprogrammer(obviously)and(2)thegraphic/multimediadesigner(todesignthe
variousinteractivescreens,animatedsequencesetc.).TheBachelorsdegreeinMultimediaisnotthe
onlysuchcoursearoundwhichisweakandoftendonotmeetthedemandsoftheITemployers.There
arenowplentyoffancifulITcourseswithtrendynameshopingtoattractstudentsintothesefaculties
acommercialploybymanyofthesecolleges.SomeofthecourseswhichIfindareparticularlyweak
andare"neitherherenorthere"wouldbedegreesin"ecommerce","internettechnology",
"multimediaapplicationmanagement"etc.Whatmakesthesituationworseismanystudents
specificallychoosesomeoftheabovesubjectsbecausetheyareknowntobelessacademically
rigourous,andhenceprovidingthemwithaneasierpathtoadegreeinITorcomputerscience.
Unfortunately,thereisalackofobjectiveinformationevaluatedbyindependentpartiesonthe
usefulnessofthesecoursesinthejobmarket.Studentsarethereforeadvisedtoconsiderverycarefully
thecoursestochoosetosubscribetoinuniversityasasupposedlyminordifferencebetween
"multimedia"and"computerscience"willactuallyresultinvastlydifferentoutcomessubsequentjob
placementandfuturecareeroptions.Thegovernmentforobviousreasonswillnotbeableto
discriminatebetweenthebetterorpoorergraduatesintermsofqualifications.Henceasaresult,easily
employablefirstclasshonoursgraduateswillstillqualifyforthescheme(shouldtheemployersbe
awareoftheschemeinthefirstplace).Asaresult,partofthesubsidyisbasically"wasted"on
graduateswhomayhaveotherwisefoundeasyemploymentirrespectiveofwhetherthesubsidywas
available.However,therebeingnostatisticsorstudiesprovidedtoshowthequalityofcandidateswho
havemanagedtofindworkwiththeschemeit'llbedifficulttomeasureitsactualeffectiveness.As
anemployermyself,I'mmorethanhappyfortheschemetocontinuebecauseIwillbeabletoobtain
subsidyforcandidateswhomIwouldhavehiredanyway.Aspartoftheschemehowever,the
governmentshouldfirstengagequalifiedconsultantstoconductseminarstoassistthesegraduates
improvetheiremployability.Thistasnkshouldactuallybethatofouruniversities,butunfortunately
theyhavenotbeenabletofulfiltheirroleinthis.Theveryfirststeptogainingemploymentistohave
adecentresumewhichwill"openthedoor"toaninterviewwiththeprospectiveemployers.Thisisa
caseofthegraduatesnotbeingseriousinthejobapplicationprocess.Theprocesstodayisnowso
convenientviaemailsandinternetrecruitmentsites,theynolongerpayseriousattentiontodetailand
nolongerattempttoreviewtheirresumeandapplication.Theyjust"rush"tocompleteandsubmitthe
applicationwithoutgivingthoughttothefactthatsubmittingahastilycompletedapplicationand
poorlyformedresumeisnotgoingtoincreasethechancesofemploymentbymuch.