100 Local IT Graduates To India For Two Weeks Training. How Useful Can It Be?
Some 100 local graduates in information technology (IT) would be sent to Bangalore, India for a two-week stint in industrial training next year.
Higher Education Minister Datuk Mustapa Mohamed said this was made possible through a joint-venture between the ministry and Infosys Technology Limited (Infosys), an India-based international company involved in information and communication technology company.
"Infosys has its own training programme where the company takes in 1,000 graduates in India for training every year. Of the 1,000 trainees, we managed to get a quota of 100 for Malaysian graduates to join in the training which will begin in February next year," he told a press conference here Tuesday.
He said with the shortage of quality workers in IT, such a training would help raise the standard and capability of the local work force in the field.
Mustapa said he also noticed that not many students were keen to pursue IT studies in local public institutions of higher learning adding that this was on the presumption that they would have problems getting jobs after completing their studies.
Earlier in his speech, Mustapa said the drop in the number of IT graduates in the country was because of the attitude in the society which only looked at the aspect of employment opportunities. "Because of this bad perception, there is a drop in the quality and number of IT graduates," he added.
Infosys Technology Limited also has operations in Atlanta, London, Toronto, Zurich, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Beijing and New Delhi. The company has about 66,000 employees worldwide.
-- BERNAMA
***** Firstly let me make it quite clear that I have nothing against enabling our IT grads to train overseas especially India. I do recognize that they are world leaders in the field and any cooperation with them will most definitely benefit us. I've also read of the excellence associated with the training party, Infosys Technology Limited (Infosys).
My doubts centre mostly on the time being spent for this training, a mere two weeks. The Indian grads who are also undergoing the same training are probably used to the system there and perhaps may require a shorter duration. When we come from a more or less alien environment compared to the locals there and maybe even a different system of learning, I wonder if such a 'condensed' training package will be worth the investment financially? As a layperson, somehow two weeks for me seems a trifle short for something as sophisticated as Information Technology. Perhaps an IT savvy reader could elaborate on this.
Higher Education Minister Datuk Mustapa Mohamed said this was made possible through a joint-venture between the ministry and Infosys Technology Limited (Infosys), an India-based international company involved in information and communication technology company.
"Infosys has its own training programme where the company takes in 1,000 graduates in India for training every year. Of the 1,000 trainees, we managed to get a quota of 100 for Malaysian graduates to join in the training which will begin in February next year," he told a press conference here Tuesday.
He said with the shortage of quality workers in IT, such a training would help raise the standard and capability of the local work force in the field.
Mustapa said he also noticed that not many students were keen to pursue IT studies in local public institutions of higher learning adding that this was on the presumption that they would have problems getting jobs after completing their studies.
Earlier in his speech, Mustapa said the drop in the number of IT graduates in the country was because of the attitude in the society which only looked at the aspect of employment opportunities. "Because of this bad perception, there is a drop in the quality and number of IT graduates," he added.
Infosys Technology Limited also has operations in Atlanta, London, Toronto, Zurich, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Beijing and New Delhi. The company has about 66,000 employees worldwide.
-- BERNAMA
***** Firstly let me make it quite clear that I have nothing against enabling our IT grads to train overseas especially India. I do recognize that they are world leaders in the field and any cooperation with them will most definitely benefit us. I've also read of the excellence associated with the training party, Infosys Technology Limited (Infosys).
My doubts centre mostly on the time being spent for this training, a mere two weeks. The Indian grads who are also undergoing the same training are probably used to the system there and perhaps may require a shorter duration. When we come from a more or less alien environment compared to the locals there and maybe even a different system of learning, I wonder if such a 'condensed' training package will be worth the investment financially? As a layperson, somehow two weeks for me seems a trifle short for something as sophisticated as Information Technology. Perhaps an IT savvy reader could elaborate on this.
Labels: Malaysia - Education.
posted by The Malaysian. at 11/29/2006 04:50:00 PM
16 Comments:
"the attitude in the society which only looked at the aspect of employment opportunities."
if our degrees and knowledge not being used to get employment, then what else is?that is the single biggest reason of a student choosing their course, while interest goes some level below.
It's not because of mentality, but survival. without proper employment, how can the students survive afterwards, not to mention the bills to be paid, and loans (including) PTPTN.
2 weeks in India for the interested, is actually mind breaking. they're not going there to actually learn IT, but to be inspired. It's true, that a longer period may prove better results, that they can both be inspired and educated.
Our students need the external exposure our society is blocking them from, no matter how long the exposure is.
that, is just my 2 sens.
Sdr Lizzam, I agree with you about the employment opportunities. As for the training in India, after seeing your blog, I don't think I'm qualified enough to argue with your opinion.
BTW, nice diapers.
Maybe next time we can ask Infosys to merge with a local UITM and open up a training centre here..So we will have the best IT specialist right here in M'sia...Yah right....
BUT 2 week must be a joke...Even a clerk goes for a month training to get accustomed to the environment..
To really produce sparkling Grad's,revamp the way our curriculum is,the way grad's are handled and packaged and then let them train with good companies as the will know what is expected on the field later...
Personally I'm not against sending these student to Infosys..But the duration and the criteria to select the students wonder me a lot...Who is going to get the lottery to Infosys...Any one ?
i think its juat a trial and error , who knows may be next time its gonna be of longer duration.
any evaluation post 2 week training? are they gonna perform better?
imho, go ahead-lah...
Anonymous, you don't know how close to the truth you are. Mydeen heard at his teh tarik stall that Infosys plans to do just that, set up a skills training centre to reskill the unemployed ICT grads right here in Malaysia.
It seems Infosys is not going to be charging the gomen for this, but expect the usual batch of Datuks and Tan Sris to get a large slice of the pie. After all, a training centre needs to be built, staffed and set up now, innit ?
It's the trend now in the gomen admin, every little thing: training, be it o/sea or locally.
Look at the unqualified teachers, they were trained for a short period then back to school to teach english. as if english is as easy as A, B, C...
MP councillors go o/sea trips for study? How practical?
there r many more e.gs......
Every year, the company I work for takes in 5 - 6 final year students from UiTM for 6 month's worth of industrial training. While they may not be in the IT program per se, my guess is that what I've observed probably applies to many graduates of this institution, and to some extent the other local universities. Some first-impression observations:
Observation #1 - they are usually VERY timid, have low confidence levels and lack personality. I can just imagine how miserably a job interview would go for them. If I were meeting them for the first time in a job interview, I would definitely NOT hire them.
Observation #2 - Poor command of English. This stems not from not understanding English, but from not speaking the language. Like it or not, the real world uses English, particularly in Process Control, Instrumentation and Safety (the industry I'm in). My remedy for the industrial trainees that are fortunate enough to be assigned to me is to force them to speak English with me.
There are a few others, but I'll stop at these 2, which are the key ones. Now, academically these kids are just fine, albeit lacking real world experience (which is to be expected). What makes them unmarketable after graduation is their low confidence level, and probably not being able to adjust from a mollycodling environment that they experience in the local universities.
So, a 2-week exposure may be good for them, but is probably too short a time to do them any real good. Especially if they don't realize where their real shortcomings are - not on the knowledge front, but the fact that they lack the social and language skills to be useful in the real world.
And for that, the mono-cultural environment of UiTM takes the full brunt of the blame. I've also noticed similar behavior from UTM grads, to a much lesser extent, those from USM and UM. The reason for this, I'm guessing, is the proximity of these institutions to Georgetown and KL, respectively, and the more open urban environment.
Just my 2-bits worth...
I don't want to sound cynical, but a 2 week course seems like "menangguk di air keruh" to me. The truth is that most of the IT graduates are incompetent. That said, I believe a lot more should be done at the college/university level to make sure that Malaysia could churn out very qualified and competent candidates.
how one can comment on the benefit and usefulness of such a stint WITHOUT any knowlegde of what the stint involves baffles me. my advice to all, dont comment on something of which you are ignorant! if you do, it will probably makes you looks like a buffon and a fool
Remain baffled warrior because that is all your close mind is good for.
even a trainning stint in an al-queda camp takes longer than 2 weeks.
or is it a ploy to turn these IT graduates into CURRY chefs?
expect mamak stalls mushrooming everywhere.
warrior2 nailed it...We are not supposed to comment on something we don't know..Even if it is ridiculous that, an IT training period is sufficient for two weeks..Maybe warrior had training for a day during his training days..But I don't know about it..If I commented on it I'll be an ignorant...
Any guys out there certainly knows any training worth it's salt will require a period longer than that..Just because you are always not open minded,do not call others ignorant..
please refrain yourselves from referring others buffon, moron, ignorant et cetera, it doesnt look nice u know. this is not the only blog i've been to.
we are just exchanging opinions , do not just go overboard. i have self respect and i really respect each other even though we have met in person.
in this life there are limits, the same thing goes to any religion(sorry off topic).
perhaps someone could organize anger-or-whatever-u-may-call-it management clinic free of charge, how about that.
i have been to a 5 day intensive proffesional management training using my own money from my own training grant(just to let u know), and found it to be a very useful experience, apart from building up your confidence level, u are also exposed to identify levels of personality and attitude of your workmates. u may pin point who is dominant, who is not et cetera, wont go that far.
even u can use less than 5 slides for your presentation and talk for an hour or more. thats only an example i can give u.
my advice is that if u think u can do it and change urself then do it. dont be shy to learn and rectify your mistakes. again u got to have faith in urselves if u want to succeed in this life and hereafter!
Stumled across your blog. Couldn't help but notice this post (I am an Indian IT guy in Singapore).
When they say 'training', what exactly do they mean? I mean, what is being taught, and how is it structured? Do these kids already have a head-start in what they are going to learn?
I am assuming that they are well versed in software engineering theory, and this training is to introduce them to the real world processes and practices of the IT industry under the guidance of an organization with an impeccable track record. I'm pretty certain that a lot can be learnt in 2 weeks if my assumption is correct. If one-day seminars for CxO's (which cost a bomb) can have proven results, I am sure 2 weeks for college kids can work too.
It is not going to make them experts in their field, but it is certainly going to make them see things from a different perspective. IT students sometimes are so engrossed with technology that they forget it is just a means to an end, not the end in itself. As for example, coding comprises hardly 20% of a software project. And unless you can sell your code/product (or unless you code for pleasure), you'll find yourself cash-strapped very soon. I am sorry but I digress sometimes.
All said, I am wishing these guys all the best. Infosys is a great organization. Bangalore is a great place. Horrible traffic though. And hope they can successfully implement whatever they learn when they get back home.
I guess it all boils down, to what is the training is all about and what is the expected outcome of the training, matters..
IF the chaps, are send to feel a different environment of working styles and to stimulate the desire and mental on how things are done in the one of the best of IT companies,then two weeks could be sufficient..And again it boils down to the participants to grasp what is handed down effectively..This applies to any industry..Formal hands-on training requires a longer training window but a mind pacing program normally takes less time depending on the person...As it goes, we can lead a horse to a well,but to make it drink,it's on it's own..Infosys training is something great for the chaps..So maximize the opportunity given and find out why they are among the best..
it's not 2 weeks la,
it's 5-6 months. my friend will be going there this may.
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