ICT, life skills a ‘must’ for fresh graduates’ employment prospects: Jordan

ICT, life skills a ‘must’ for fresh graduates’ employment prospects: Jordan

AMMAN — Higher Educational institutions can help reduce high unemployment rates among fresh graduates and boost the competitiveness of local labour force by equipping students with “practical and advanced” Information Computer and Technology (ICT) skills, experts suggest.

Technology seems to be advancing faster than the four-year degree structure, which may not give fresh graduates the skills they need to remain competitive in the fast-paced labour market, labour expert Ahmad Awad told The Jordan Time.

“Students today must become lifelong learners,” Awad said, adding that obtaining basic ICT skills, as well as “soft skills”, are a “must” for graduates aiming for upward mobility in their career path.

“Universities need to offer undergraduates modern, advanced and practical ICT skills, as well as communication and problem-solving skills to make an impact and focus on teaching relevant, tangible and required skills for the labour market,” Awad said.

Students have to be self-learners and acquire skills through extensive research, persistence and commitment, he added.

Awad posited that the decline in labour force participation may be linked to prospective job candidates’ relative lack of market-demanded ICT and life skills.

Spokesperson for the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Muhannad Khatib, told The Jordan Times that the ministry has advised all universities