SPEECH BY MR THARMAN SHANMUGARATNAM, MINISTER FOR EDUCATION AND SECOND MINISTER FOR FINANCE, AT THE ITE GRADUATION CEREMONY 2007 ON TUESDAY, 24 JULY 2007, 3:00 PM AT UNIVERSITY CULTURAL CENTRE HALL, NUS
Mr Bob Tan, Chairman, ITE Board of Governors
Mr Bruce Poh, Director & CEO of ITE
Distinguished Guests
Graduands of ITE
Parents and family members
Ladies and Gentlemen
Good afternoon,
1. It gives me great pleasure to be here today at the Institute of Technical Education Graduation Ceremony. I congratulate all the graduands and award winners on your achievements. You, together with your parents and loved ones, have every reason to be proud. Well done.
Success of the ITE System2. The Institute of Technical Education is a leader in education. It has been transformed since its inception in 1992. Today, under the “One ITE, Three Colleges” system, ITE admits more than 13,000 students in each cohort of Singaporeans. The transformation has not just been in scale or numbers, but in quality. ITE’s “Hands-on, Minds-on, Hearts-on” education breeds students who are confident, have the skills to meet the demands of an increasingly sophisticated workplace, and are eager to upgrade and progress in their careers. ITE is also the only post-secondary education institution that has achieved the Singapore Quality Award.
3. According to the 2006 Graduate Employment Survey, 89% of the ITE class of 2006 were gainfully employed within 6 months of completing their ITE courses. Of those who were not employed, 60% had actually received at least 1 job offer, but were just being selective! This means that almost 96% of ITE graduates secured job offers within half a year of completing their ITE courses.
4. However, entry to their first jobs is for many ITE graduates just the start of a journey of continuous learning and upgrading. There are countless examples. One of them is Mr Tony Kam. After graduating with a Higher Nitec in Electronics, Tony was hired by IBM immediately. He continued to take short courses along the way, and developed an all-round competence in IT hardware, software and sales. Tony then took on the challenge of being Account Director at Sun Microsystems. Today, Tony is a Country Manager for technology products at Oracle. He now draws about twenty times his starting pay. Tony is an example of how ITE graduates are making a name for themselves, with their confidence and determination to achieve.
5. The success of the ITE system is also gaining much attention and recognition overseas. In the last year alone, ITE received about 750 visitors from 30 countries, including Australia, Japan and Sweden, all of whom were interested in learning about the Singapore VTE system in ITE. ITE is also being called upon to provide consultancy services and technical assistance to governments and technical education institutions in many countries such as China, Vietnam, Indonesia and Jordan. For example, ITE played a key role in setting up the Vietnam-Singapore Technical Training Centre, which is now expanding further. It is also currently working with Batam Polytechnic to establish quality training facilities and curricula for the Batam-Bintan-Karimun Special Economic Zone.
Expanding Opportunities for ITE Students6. The achievements of ITE did not come about by chance. They reflect the efforts of the leadership and staff of ITE, and all its stakeholders, to constantly improve the ITE model of education.
Expanding opportunities through electives7. Over the years, ITE has introduced new initiatives and created many opportunities to enhance the learning and overall experience of ITE students. It has allowed students with good performance to offer multi-disciplinary and cross-level electives. These elective opportunities have grown significantly. Currently, Nitec students have as many as 24 Higher Nitec-level electives to choose from. These electives not only broaden the knowledge of the students, they also allow the students to obtain credit exemptions should they later progress to the Higher Niteccourses.
8. ITE has since 2005 also worked with the polytechnics to offer 27 diploma-level electives to its students to further challenge them. Singapore Polytechnic offers a Structured Programming module which trains the ITE students in IT programming techniques. Ngee Ann Polytechnic offers a PC Networking module where students learn data networking. This development has been well-received by ITE students.
9. These diploma-level electives also benefit ITE students who go on to polytechnic studies. The latest Graduate Employment Survey indicates that 21% of the ITE class of 2006 have taken up full-time polytechnic or private diplomas, while another 3% have taken up part-time diploma courses. In other words, almost 1 in 4 was enrolled in a diploma course within 6 months of graduating.
Expanding opportunities through overseas exposure10. Besides equipping students with relevant technical knowledge and skills, ITE is developing a global mindset in its students. Through the Global Awareness Programme, all ITE students learn about different cultures and get to hear from internal and external speakers about work and life experiences abroad. Some students also get to participate either in the ITE Overseas Exchange programme, or the Overseas Industrial Attachment.
11. Syed Muhamad Noh and Zhafran Bin Ahamad Johari, both of whom are pursuing a Higher Nitec in Mechanical Engineering in College East, did an overseas industrial attachment at Flextronics (Shanghai) last year. Syed Muhamad participated in Six-Sigma projects, where he helped to highlight areas for improvement, as well as identify methods to improve plant workflow. As he put it, ”As a teenager, I am truly grateful for this rare opportunity to experience working overseas. It gave me the chance to interact with people from a different culture and lifestyle. They actually made an effort to look up the dictionary whenever they couldn’t understand what I was saying. I was humbled by their eagerness to learn.” Zhafran, whose job was to conduct quality checks on the assembled machines, found that he was able to put his skills to practice in a real working environment. In one month, he learnt how to adapt and overcome various challenges, such as the differences in language and working habits. He felt that such overseas opportunities give students valuable exposure and develop their abilities to adapt to a changing, global environment.
12. I applaud ITE’s efforts to create these opportunities for its students. It is nurturing students with passion for quality and an eye to the world.
ITE Technical Engineer Diploma in Machine Technology13. ITE continues to embark on new initiatives in its drive to be “A Global Leader in Technical Education”. In line with the Government’s efforts to offer a greater diversify of pathways in the education system, I am pleased to announce that ITE will tie up with Gottlieb-Daimler-Schule (under the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of Baden-Württemberg, Germany) to offer the first ITE Technical Engineer Diploma in Machine Technology. Under this initiative, ITE staff will work with staff from Gottlieb-Daimler Schule (GDS), which is a highly ranked Vocation Education and Training institute in Baden-Württemburg, Germany, to provide training in ITE leading to the Technical Engineer Diploma (TED).
14. The new Technical Engineer Diploma programme offered by ITE will be a two-year full-time programme. It aims to produce highly-skilled and specialised manpower for Singapore’s growing Precision Engineering industry. The diploma programme builds on the quality hands-on training provided by ITE to its students, and will be open to ITE Nitec holders in Precision Engineering and Higher Nitec holders in Mechanical Engineering. Graduates of the Technical Engineer Diploma programme can be considered for admission into the universities of Applied Sciences in Baden-Württemberg, Germany.
15. ITE has obtained strong endorsement from industry representatives for this Technical Engineer Diploma. It is currently in discussion with the Economic Development Board to provide sponsorship for deserving students who enrol in the programme. I understand that some companies have already agreed to offer scholarships to selected students. I would like to commend ITE for taking the initiative to develop the new Technical Engineer Diploma in Machine Technology and, in the process, creating an added and attractive progression pathway for ITE students.
Recognising ITE’s Leaders16. ITE’s remarkable transformation over the last 15 years owes itself in large part to the outstanding stewardship of two individuals. They are Mr Eric Gwee, who stepped down as Chairman of the ITE Board of Governors earlier this year after 13 years of service to ITE, and Dr Law Song Seng, who was ITE’s founding Director & CEO and whose service to Singapore’s technical and vocational education sector spans the past 25 years. Under their visionary leadership, ITE has succeeded in creating a world-class post-secondary education system which is now synonymous with excellence, locally and globally. Through their personal commitment and guidance, ITE has created opportunities for students such as yourselves to fulfil their hopes and aspirations. I would like to place on record the Ministry of Education’s appreciation, and that of everyone connected to ITE, for Mr Eric Gwee and Dr Law Song Seng’s exceptional contributions to Singapore education.
17. I would also like to welcome Mr Bob Tan in his new position as Chairman of ITE Board, and Mr Bruce Poh as the new Director and CEO of ITE. They bring with them a wealth of leadership experience, expertise and network in industry and education. Together with the other members of the Board and management, I am sure they will take ITE to a new and higher level of excellence.
Conclusion18. The graduands who are here today face a bright future. The Singapore economy is doing well, opening up many job opportunities. ITE has equipped you with the necessary technical knowledge, skills and I am sure the confidence to make the most of these opportunities. I am sure that you will cherish the time you have spent in ITE, as you look forward now to pursuing your career aspirations and life goals. I congratulate all of you on your achievements, and I wish you all the best for your future.