"Vocational Training": More than 50,000 Registered Since the Beginning of the Year and 18,000 Enrolled in Training
Amman4 min read
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The Director General of the Vocational Training Institution, Ra'fat Al-Soufi, said on Monday that the number of registrants at the institution since the beginning of the year until now has exceeded 50,000 young men and women, while the number of those enrolled in training is about 18,000 in various sectors.
Al-Soufi added that the turnout for the current general vocational training programs is "unprecedented," noting that the categories coming to the training are no longer limited to tenth-grade graduates, but include holders of doctorate, master's, and bachelor's degrees.
He explained that the average number of people enrolled in vocational training in previous years was about 10,000 annually, while the number this year has increased significantly, along with an increase in female participation and the expansion of the categories benefiting from training programs.
He pointed out that the percentage of female participation in the southern region during the current year reached about 73%, while the percentage in various governorates is about 55% annually, while the percentage of female participation in the second round reached 41%.
Al-Soufi explained that the tourism, hospitality, agriculture, and services sectors, including beauty for women and men's haircuts, as well as industry and maintenance of hybrid and electric cars, are witnessing increasing demand, with numbers on waiting lists in some of these specialties.
He pointed out that some specialties that were in demand in the labor market and were not popular with students are now witnessing high turnout rates.
He said that the institution is currently conducting a study to optimize the use of resources, with a first phase to absorb the numbers, followed by a phase during which the registrants on the waiting lists will be absorbed.
Al-Soufi attributed the high turnout to the development that has occurred in vocational training programs, the close relationship with the private sector, and the introduction of training units in the programs related to artificial intelligence, English language, life skills, and entrepreneurship skills.
Regarding the academic qualifications of the registrants, Al-Soufi explained that more than two thousand young men and women registered in the second round hold a high school diploma or higher, while the number of bachelor's degree holders is about 763 young men and women, diplomas about 300, and master's degrees 15, in addition to other categories of applicants.
He confirmed that some specialties achieve very high employment rates, reaching 100% in some cases, including the pharmaceutical industry sector, where the trainee gets a job opportunity directly after graduation, noting that pharmaceutical companies participate in selecting trainees and implementing the training process.
He added that the jewelry design specialty also records a very high employment rate, almost reaching 100%.
Al-Soufi explained that the institution studies the specialties before offering them, based on the needs of the labor market, in cooperation with the private sector and sectoral skills councils, in addition to studies that follow up on graduates.
He pointed out that the institution has thousands of partners from the private sector, and that the sectoral skills councils play a role in determining the required specialties in various sectors.
Regarding the possibility of reaching a saturation stage in some professional specialties, Al-Soufi said that the institution conducts an annual study of the specialties required in the labor market in cooperation with the private sector and sectoral skills councils.
He explained that the institution has reached the adoption of the concept of "mobile workshops," whereby the equipment for the specialty is transferred to another region in case of reaching a saturation stage in a certain region, in order to ensure that there is no saturation in the labor market in that region.
