27 September - 3 October 2001

Educating for industry

Victor Scicluna, chairman of MCAST, explains to Blanche Gatt how the college intends to create meaningful and alternative opportunities for all post-secondary students

A shortage of qualified, skilled staff constitutes a major obstacle to the development of any industry, and as our local industries jostle to expand within an already highly competitive environment, seeking but not finding the right personnel to power your company can prove disastrous. Malta is not alone in this – the world over is crying out for specialised professionals in the fields of IT, the maritime sector and many others.
In IT alone, all over the world, vacancies are numerous and salaries high – Malta, with its declared intention of turning itself into the IT centre of the Mediterranean, is actively seeking investment from foreign IT companies. But can we provide the necessary manpower? This is a question that is being addressed by the new Malta College for Art, Science and Technology (MCAST), and I met with the chairman, Victor Scicluna, recently to find out how the relationship between the

Institutes that fall under its aegis and local industry is planning to proceed.
Victor is a seasoned industry player, having recently retired after 27 years at the helm of Central Cigarette Company. “I was asked to take this position on,” he explained, “because I think the need was felt that this college needs to be oriented quite firmly towards the needs of industry and the economy. A cultural change is necessary to achieve this, and I think that a person with an industry background will be able to contribute greatly towards cultural shift.”
“The college comprises a number of institutes, each offering specialised training in vocational fields at different levels. All are intended to supply a steady and reliable stream of employees to industry – Factory churning out trained workers. In industrial terms perhaps you could describe it as such. But here we’re dealing with people, and it is very important for us that we provide not only the specialised training, but a holistic education – if you compare it to the education you get at university, this will be more hands-on. There is academic content in most of the courses of course, but coupled with valuable hands-on experience too.”
Those of us in our thirties will remember the Polytechnic (also known as MCAST) as being the same sort of vocational school. I asked Victor whether MCAST is following in the footsteps of this now-defunct institution. “Yes, definitely we are filling the gap left by the closure of the Polytechnic. But there are some fundamental differences between the old MCAST and this. Today we have a much wider and deeper brief. Our activities cover a much wider spectrum and we are starting with six institutes which will eventually be increased by another four. Also the old Polytechnic was much more restrictive; now we will be catering to five different educational levels – from level 1, which is the operative skills, to level 5, which is degree and professional level. The classes today will be more competency-based, not so much exam-based and students will be assessed on their competence and skills throughout the year.”
Basing results on continuous assessment will come as a great plus to those talented people whose nerves fail them during exams. But how do you measure students’ progress and standards without them? “In fact,” said Victor. “Exams trip up a lot of valid people, which is why we will be emphasising the importance of competency very highly. And in this respect, we shall be working very closely with the Malta Council for Professional and Vocational Qualification, who have been given the task of setting up standards against which competency can be measured.”
“MCAST is filling a big void here,” added Victor, “if one had to compare Malta with the other EU applicant countries for example, Malta maintains a higher spending on education, but is the lowest on vocational education and training.”
From the employers’ point of view, will an MCAST graduate be as interesting a potential recruit as a university graduate? “Of course employers do look at qualifications,” Victor replied, “but primarily their concern is with ability and adaptability. In fact we believe our graduates will be highly employable and sought after.”
Interaction between industry players and the college would provide a valuable channel of two-way communication for the benefit of both. I asked Victor whether any structure was envisaged to provide this. “We are bound by the College statute to set up a Partnerships Office within the College,” he replied. “Their role will be to create partnerships for each different Institute – at least two partnerships for each. One from the industry sector and one from another educational institution which has shown excellence in the particular field. Through these partnerships we will be able to organise job placements and work experiences for our students, as well as keep in tune with industry requirements.”
“The benefits to industry and commerce are very clear, they have an opportunity to be involved with the major vocational training provider in Malta responsible for providing their business with the skills and knowledge required in order to keep them both in business and competitive.
“They will have an opportunity to influence and shape the vocational curriculum and assist MCAST in identifying the skills gap. It is not just a case of how industry and
commerce can benefit from the relationship, it is how the College and ultimately all those young and mature students who pass through our doors will benefit by this relationship, and we will be placing a strong emphasis on skills leading to employability.”
“As you will appreciate,” said Victor, “five of the six institutes that have formed MCAST existed in one form or another and therefore had already established links with industries and commercial sectors relative to the vocational courses they were offering. The five incorporated Institutes are as follows: Electronics Engineering Institute; Building and Construction Engineering Institute; Business and Commerce Institute; Art and Design Institute; Maritime Institute. The sixth is the Information and Communication Techno-logy Institute.”
Around 1,222 applications were received for the 45 different
courses offered by these institutions. “In all there are some 1,028 vacancies, so a number of applicants will be disappointed,” said Victor. “This was complicated by the fact that a great number of applications were for ICT courses, and several of them were over-subscribed.”
This cannot be anything but good news to an IT sector that is desperately trying to grow, but hindered by the lack of skilled staff. “We are looking at trying to supplement the market need with evening courses,” Victor said, “but the problem is trying to find suitably qualified teachers; it is very difficult to tempt talented IT people away from industry right now.”
Recruitment has in fact been a major project for the College, as it prepared for launch. “At this stage in the development of MCAST our focus has been directed towards the employment of staff and the development of the infrastructure for an October opening,” Victor expanded. “However, the strong industrial and commercial representation within the MCAST board of governors together with the Partnerships Office will ensure that involvement with industry and commerce will be one of partnership. It is important that industry and commerce are not just perceived as having involvement, if MCAST is to make the impact that I envisage then industry and commerce must be active stakeholders in both the development and strategic positioning of MCAST.”
“There are opportunities for all six institutes, however, it is clearly evident that real and tangible opportunities exist for the Information and Communications Technology Institute and the Maritime Institute at both a National and International level.”
MCAST has currently appointed 144 full-time teaching staff. Of these, 71 per cent came over from the public sector and the remaining 29 per cent from the private sector. At this stage we do not envisage any problems in providing the courses advertised within the MCAST prospectus. The recruiting of ICT staff with the appropriate skills is a problem throughout Europe, however; again we have been very
fortunate having also recruited some young graduates from the Uni-
versity and with the help of the Industry we will develop them with the appropriate skills for the future needs.
“MCAST will supplement its full-time complement by employing a number of part-time staff. This is a positive move as the majority of the part-time staff we intend
to employ have specialist skills and are employed by the respective industries.”
MCAST is funded in part through the Education Budget, and staff appointed by MCAST that were previously on the Department of Education’s payroll will carry with them their “salary” budget. The Maritime Authority will part-finance the Maritime Institute, through their Partnership Agreement with the College.” Victor explained.
“It should be made clear that MCAST like all educational institutions is not operating with unlimited resources, therefore capital expenditure has been allocated in accordance with priorities that have been identified within the strategic business plan,” he said.
“Capital budgets approved for 2001 have been allocated to give priority to buildings extensions at the Electronics and Electrical Engineering Institute. Major refurbishment and electrical works at the Art and Design Institute at Targa Gap and also to provide start-up funds for the setting up of the new Information and Communications Technology Institute (ICT) with all the necessary computer equipment. However, the board has approved a three-year business plan and an application for funding based on the business plan has been presented to the Ministry of Finance.”
The raison d’etre behind the College is to boost Malta’s economic profile by furnishing industry needs with high quality manpower. How far can MCAST go in achieving this, I wondered. “There is no question of MCAST having anything but a positive affect on the Maltese economy,” Victor replied.
“It is true that for some, MCAST will be seen as challenging the traditions and customs of the past within the educational system. However, it is not about change just for the sake of change, it is change that will provide the flexibility required to give all of our students the opportunity to quality education and training.
“MCAST will play a pivotal role in ensuring that vocational education and training; as well as the skills-base is comparable in both standard and quality with the rest of our competitors. This will enable Malta to attract inward investors as well as provide opportunities for existing business.”