There is an abundance of graduates in South Africa who complete their studies only to discover that the best is yet to come; the challenge of landing a job that will allow them to utilise their qualifications.

Workplace training programmes can play a critical role in addressing this challenge.

However, in order to ensure that they serve their purpose, such programmes need to be carefully designed in order to yield the best results for both the graduate and the employer.

What do unemployed graduates need from a workplace training programmes?

Practical experience

mentorship

and

job readiness support

before they enter the workforce.

Practical Experience Must Come First

A graduate who has completed a number of years of study needs to get his or her hands dirty in order to obtain practical experience.

As such, organisations offering workplace programmes need to create assignments that relate directly to the qualification of the graduate, rather than asking them to perform menial tasks.

For example, an accounting graduate needs to work on practical assignments that will allow him or her to demonstrate competence in financial accounting or reporting, whereas an engineering graduate needs to be exposed to engineering-related assignments.

This will enable the graduate to obtain verifiable experience that can be used to demonstrate his or her capabilities to prospective employers.

Mentorship Can Make the Transition Easier

There is no doubt that transitioning from studies to the workplace is challenging, especially for those who have no work experience.

As such, mentorship plays a critical role in helping such graduates to adjust to the workplace and understand what is expected of them.

Some of the things that a mentor can help with include:

workplace etiquette

communication

problem solving

receiving and responding to feedback

industry-specific issues

and

career development advice.

In addition, mentorship creates an avenue for the graduate to ask questions, rather than leave him or her to figure everything out on his or her own.

Job Readiness Should Be Part of the Programme

Most organisations understand that simply having a degree does not equip graduates with the skills required to work in an office environment.

As such, job readiness needs to be part of the workplace training programme offered to graduate participants.

Such a programme should be aimed at helping them to develop skills such as communication, teamwork, time management, presentation skills, CV and interview skills, and general workplace skills.

These are all skills that can help to differentiate between a graduate who knows how to utilise his or her qualifications and one who cannot present his or her skills and competencies in a manner that is appealing to employers.

Placements Should be Related to Their Qualifications

One of the biggest challenges with graduate programmes is that most graduates are placed in organisations that have little or nothing to do with their field of specialisation.

It is critical that graduates are placed in organisations that utilise their qualifications in order to ensure that they are able to utilise their skills and knowledge in their day-to-day work.

In addition, a graduate needs to be placed in a position that relates to his or her qualification, skills, workplace responsibilities, and career aspirations.

He or she needs to be able to get value for his time invested in the workplace training programme, rather than simply be a tick-box exercise for the organisation.

It can also be advantageous to the employer in that they are more likely to retain such a graduate since he or she is able to make meaningful contributions to the organisation.

Programmes Need Enough Time to Build Experience

It is one thing to expose the graduate to the workplace for a number of weeks, but it is quite another to allow him or her to gain enough experience to be able to utilise it in the future.

A well-designed programme should provide graduates with 12 to 24 months to develop the necessary expertise, receive constructive feedback, and create a portfolio of work experience in order to demonstrate his or her skills and abilities to prospective employers.

Graduates who participate in longer programmes stand a better chance of landing jobs that require some work experience.

Training Should Lead Somewhere

It is critical that the workplace training programme has an end-goal that goes beyond simply providing the graduate with work experience.

The goal should be to ensure that the graduate obtains demonstrable work experience, new skills, and ideally, a positive reference from the organisation in order to enhance their credibility with potential employers.

The programme should also aim to improve the graduate’s CV, interview skills, and general readiness for the workplace.

The longer the programme, the more likely it is to have positive outcomes for the graduate.

It should also be noted that such programmes should not be used as an excuse to keep graduates employed indefinitely without providing them with any additional skills or training.

Employers Also Benefit

It is important to remember that these workplace training programmes are mostly geared towards helping the graduate secure employment.

They also offer numerous benefits for the employer in that they get access to fresh talent that has been exposed to their operations.

Organisations can utilise these programmes to train future employees and contribute to skills development for the benefit of the economy.

There is also a need for employers not to treat these graduates as cheap labour.

It is important to invest in them as employees in order to ensure that both parties benefit.

A Stronger Approach to Graduate Unemployment

The challenges facing graduate unemployment in South Africa cannot be resolved through qualifications alone.

Universities and colleges do their part by providing quality education, but it also falls upon employers to contribute to the skills development of fresh graduates in order to facilitate their transition into the workforce.

The most effective way of doing this is by providing graduates with workplace training that focuses on helping them to gain valuable work experience, receive mentorship, and utilise their qualification in the workplace.

The end-goal should be to enhance their employability, rather than merely give them something to do while they look for a job.