SINGAPORE — Students studying subjects in the aviation and hospitality sectors are receiving advice on how they could find jobs in adjacent sectors that have not been hit as hard by the Covid-19 pandemic, Manpower Minister Josephine Teo said in Parliament on Monday (Nov 2).

Mrs Teo was responding to a question from Mr Desmond Choo, Member of Parliament (MP) for Tampines Group Representation Constituency (GRC).

He asked whether the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) will be offering help to students majoring in these fields who are graduating next year, in light of the slowdown in the aviation sector.

In her reply, Mrs Teo said that the institutes of higher learning have already started providing career guidance and assistance programmes to prepare students who are graduating in these areas next year.

These programmes are assisting students with navigating career opportunities in adjacent sectors, she added.

The institutes of higher learning are also introducing new electives so that students may be equipped with cross-sector skills, such as data analytics, digital marketing and programming.

Supplementing these, MOM is organising career fairs that feature job openings in these adjacent sectors that can still tap the students’ education and skills.

The Government has also introduced the SGUnited traineeships programme, which has offered more than 21,000 traineeship places from about 3,300 host organisations.

“In general, employers are open to accepting good candidates across a range of disciplines,” Mrs Teo said.

“Candidates will also have better opportunities if they are open to trying out positions outside of the disciplines in which they are trained, or look beyond positions that many applicants have focused on,” she added.

Mr Choo also asked if the ministry will assist students to maintain their competencies in their field of study should they choose to move to adjacent sectors for the time being, so that they do not lose out to their peers in the future.

He said that students are concerned over the lack of internship and attachment opportunities, as this may affect their employability because they will be competing with other jobseekers with more experience when they graduate.

Mrs Teo said in reply that for students in aerospace engineering, about half of them have still been able to secure internships related to the sector.

For the other half of the students, the authorities have managed to secure internship positions for them in related sectors such as in manufacturing.

“This is also a very meaningful way for them to acquire experience before they graduate,” she said.

The same has been observed in aviation management, where about 60 per cent of students have been able to attain internships in related sectors.

As for ensuring that students are able to return to the sectors in which they majored in their studies, Mrs Teo said that they can return should opportunities arise once the particular sector recovers.

MOM will also make available career conversion programmes, should these graduates be required to refresh their skills when returning to the aviation and hospitality sectors, she added.