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ERIC Number: EJ1130376
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2017-Feb
Pages: 20
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0020-8566
EISSN: N/A
The Implementation of Industrial Training in Tertiary Education in Malaysia: Objectives, Realisations and Outputs in the Case of Foreign Language Students
Machart, Régis
International Review of Education, v63 n1 p103-122 Feb 2017
The large range of jobs that Malaysian undergraduates of foreign languages are often employed in after completion of their studies (education, tourism, banking, business, management, etc.) is not necessarily related to their major field of study. This situation often makes it difficult for lecturers to develop a comprehensive professional training for their benefit. In the early 2010s, unemployment rates of Malaysian undergraduates were increasing, although the job market was quite flexible. In order to improve students' employability, Malaysian universities decided to restructure their curricula. Industrial training, or "Latihan Industri" (LI), became a new mandatory requirement for all future undergraduates of the new programmes from 2011. LI aims to match students' academic training with the needs of the private sector. However, most companies were not prepared to accept the first influx of trainees from all types of programmes (sciences, social sciences or the humanities) in 2014. Consequently, many students could not find an appropriate LI position in the field they were studying, and were placed in positions for which they were poorly prepared. At the end of their LI, students had to submit a logbook of their activities as well as provide a final report in which they were asked to evaluate their experiences. A content analysis of these reports from four foreign language students who did their LI in different sectors (finance, education, industry and retail) provides interesting insights into the different skills required by Malaysian employers, irrespective of their sector of activity. The analysis of the reports raises the question of the adequacy of the academic training of foreign language students for the Malaysian job market, and the transferability of their acquired language skills to their new work environment.
Springer. 233 Spring Street, New York, NY 10013. Tel: 800-777-4643; Tel: 212-460-1500; Fax: 212-348-4505; e-mail: service-ny@springer.com; Web site: http://www.springerlink.com
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Malaysia
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A