INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION
By Roger Bartholomew

Roger Bartholomew spends his life talking with students - both as a teacher and as a counselor. His position as president of International Education Specialists, Chairman of Southville Foreign University and Director/Teacher at Southville International School all involve listening to students and parents and advising them on their studies and careers. He is a frequent speaker in schools, colleges, universities, public forums and focus groups.

UPSKILL:  ONE WAY TO ENTER THE GLOBAL EMPLOYMENT MARKET

Many articles and publications talk about preparation for careers and speak in glowing terms about career opportunities, but fail to go into the nitty-gritty details or what actually needs to be done to turn you from zero to hero. There are even some good organizations like the Career Development Association of the Philippines (CDAP) who are dedicated to assisting college graduates and industry professionals how to start and advance their careers, but where can the “hard” information really be found?

It is regrettable that in the Philippines it is very hard to get key information that is really needed when planning (or re-planning!) your career. This is the kind of information that is needed:

• What are the most advertised job vacancies in 2008 for jobs in the Philippines?
• What qualifications are needed for these jobs?
• What are the most advertised job vacancies in 2008 for overseas jobs?
• What qualifications are really needed for these jobs?
• How, where, in what time and for what cost can these qualifications be gained?
• In what areas will the jobs be in the next 12 months, 2, 3, 4, and 5 years?

If this information was available statistically in a regularly updated and understandable format, forward planning would become MUCH easier. Hopefully this will become the next project for CDAP or JobsDB.com……..

So how can you upskill, re-skill or get the qualifications needed for a really good opportunity? As discussed last month, Australia has great jobs on offer at the moment for people with both Trade Skills (specifically Butcher, Baker, Sheet Metal Worker, Floor Tiler, Welder, Plumber, Carpenter, Bricklayer) or Professional Skills such as Accounting, Architecture, Engineering, IT, Nursing, etc. Unfortunately a very large number of people have taken general business degrees and when they look at their qualifications and work experience, they realize that they don’t have specific skills/qualifications, so many of the opportunities may be passing them by unless they do something about it – but what should they do?

The answer to this question is dependent on TIME, CONVENIENCE AND COST. It’s the usual formula: to reduce the amount of time to become qualified, the cost increases. To reduce the cost, the convenience decreases and the time increases. You get the picture…..? Let me illustrate.

Mr. Jobseeker holds a general IT degree from a Philippine computer college. The degree does not have professional recognition nor is the jobseeker professionally licensed. Jobseeker has two years of work experience in IT in a non-supervisory capacity. What are the options?

OPTION 1. Low Cost, Low Convenience, High Time. Build up five years of work experience and apply in three years time when work experience has become the deciding factor rather than academic qualifications. Improve English Language through some lessons while working. Apply for residency.

OPTION 2. Some Cost, High Convenience, Some Time. Take a specialist industry-based course – while still working – in a specific area (e.g. SAP, C#, Java, Open Source Programming, Network Security) that has industry qualifying exams that are recognized internationally. Then work for one year in that specialist area. Take English lessons to improve English skills. Then apply for residency.

OPTION 3. High Cost, High Convenience, Low time. Go down to Australia to study. Take a two year program (Graduate or Advanced Diploma), work 20 hours per week while studying to help defray costs and increase work experience. Improve English language skills by living in an English speaking environment. Apply for permanent residency upon graduation having organized the full-time position while studying. The Australian government will give you a one-year work permit while your permanent residency is being processed.

These are the option open to the educated but non-skilled person. However…… many people would like to go for Option 3 but it’s a bit beyond their financial capabilities to pay for two years of study even though part-time work is allowed. For these people there is a special card to play – NEW ZEALAND.

In principle New Zealand is very similar. But…. New Zealand only requires ONE year of study before the grant of a work permit while residency is being applied for. And for business graduates, a Graduate Diploma in Human Resource Management, Marketing, Organization Leadership, Entrepreneurial Skills or IT are all good options. Cost of study in NZ is a little less than Australia and cost of living is definitely less. Part-time work while studying is encouraged. NZ also has many one-year National Certificate Trade Skills courses available in areas like Automotive, Plumbing, Welding, Carpentry, Cooking, Baking, and many, many more.