fa \O) UNIVERSITI TEKNOLOGI MALAYSIA FINAL EXAMINATION SEMESTER II 2007/2008 ACADEMIC SESSION WAZRUL fistaMm b&b MOWO Yow BRKOSOZSOAWIOR COURSE CODE : UBB 2422 COURSE : ADVANCED ENGLISH FOR ACADEMIC COMMUNICATION PROGRAMME : ALL PROGRAMMES DURATION : 2 HOURS 30 MINUTES DATE : APRIL/MAY 2008 MARKS . : 30 ——_—— INSTRUCTION TO THE CANDIDATES : Answer the question in the answer booklet provided. DN THIS EXAMINATION PAPER CONSISTS OF _S_ PRINTED PAGES. (INCLUDING THE COVER PAGE) -Instruetio Read the situation below and complete the task given using the primary and secondary sourves provided. ‘The Malaysian Ministry of Human Resources is very concerned with the increasing number of unemployed graduates. According to Datuk Abdul Rahman bin Bakar, the Deputy Human Resources Minister, if this problem is not resolved, it will have a negative ‘impact on the economy dnd development of the country. In response to this problem, a committee has been set up to investigate this matter. Three thousand employers throughout Malaysia were randomly surveyed. Results from the survey are presented in the following pages. Task Write a report of five to seven pages using information from all the primary data given and your background knowledge, and use af least two (2) excerpts from the secondary * data provided. Your report should include the following headings: INTRODUCTION (background, objective, scope and significance of study) METHODOLOGY (sampling, instruments, and rescarch procedure) FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS CONCLUSIONS RECOMMENDATIONS Note: Marks will be deducted for direct lifting of sentences from the excerpts.PRIMARY DATA ‘The following are the results obtained from the study. Figure 1: Number of Unemployed Graduates in Malaysix (rounded to the nearest thousand) ‘Weak command of English Poor social etiquette Demand too much pay Degrees not relevant Toa choosy No vacancies 10% 20% = 30% 40% = 5% Figure 2: Reasons for Unemployment‘Table 1; Attributes Employers look for in Graduates (ranked from t ~ Most (—_ - Attribute = Rank Relevant work experience 1 Communication skills. 2 Good work ethics/attitude 3 Personality 4 Academic qualification 5 SECONDARY DATA Excerpt 1 Azimah Mahmud (2006) “The Right Qualification Not Enough, Grads Told”. New Straits Times, 18 December 2006, p.13. ‘The right qualification alone will not guarantee graduates a job if they do not equip ‘themselves with the right skills and altitude, Deputy Prisse Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said. He said they should equip themselves with the relevant soft skills to compete in the job market upon graduation, aru psust not be content with what they have but should strive for excellence. *[f-you have the right qualifications, right skills and attitude, you will find jobs anywhere (including outside Malaysia),” he said in his keynote address when opening the National Career Camival 2006 at the International Islamic University Malaysia main campus in Gombak on Monday. As a measure to tackle the high unemployment rate among graduates, Najib said the Cabinet had directed the Public Services Department (PSD) to ‘expedite the process of filling the 32,000 vacancies in the public sector. However, he pointed out that this alone would not solve the issuc of unemployment among graduates, __ and encouraged them to venture into the private seetor or explore self-employment. He also wamed undergraduates that in this fast changing economic environment, ‘employees need to constantly improve themselves with new skills or face the risk of being left bebind.Excerpt 2 James Phang (2004) ‘Making Unemploynble Graduates Employable’ in Graeuan, Vol, 31, pl? ‘The issue of unemployment among local university graduates has caught the attention of the nation, This article will address the issue by purting it within the context of the new knowledge-based economy (K-economy), examine some of the alternatives, and put forward a solution that could make unemployable graduates employable. After undergoing three to four years of studies that are not industry-focused, itis difficult to fault the students for taking-a long time to be productive in their jabs, as they have to re-learn and try to convert their theoretical knowledge into getting a practical job done, Rote learning and gn ‘emphasis on examinations instead of practical skills have also made it difficult for local tuniversity graduates to satisfy employers. Graduates lose out to applicants who have the skill to get the work done, rather than just the theory Which may get the Work done. In the fast changing world of technology, itis important to realize that there is a very high possibility that they may end up in areas they are not trained for. Graduates must learn to be mult-skilled to improve their employment prospects. They must also realize that they are living in a multi-lisciplinary world, The academic degree may not have prepared them for the actual job, but it should have taught chem haw to learn, Then, we are reminded ‘constantly that knowledge workers will replace traditional office workers. As companies reduce their workforce, the employees that are retained usually possess the characteristics ‘of'a knowledge worker, Are our graduates knowledge workers? The attainment of a degree is just a star, not an end in itself. Many graduates actually stop learning when they graduate. Employers, however, are looking for graduates who have the ability to Learn on their own, Excerpt 3 “Abdul Razak Ahmad (2007) "The Unemployable Malaysian Graduate”, The Siar, 21 January 2007. Retrieved 12 March 2007 from jisp:/www.the star.com.my "Graduate unemployment is a worrying trend because the numbers have been increasing in the past several years," says Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Vice Chancellor Professor Datuk Dr Mohd Salleh Mohd Yasin. Why is this happening? A likely explanation would be a changing economy anchored in the service sector. Bicing reliant on services means employers require people who not only have knowledge but also possess the "soft skills" as well: people who can. communicate effectively, and analyze and solve problems efficiently. The employability of the average Malaysian graduate is becoming more dependent on the mastery of these soft skills: ‘The growing number of unemployed is mainly because many arrive in the job market poorly equipped with the skills required by a changing ecanomy. Of the 12 criteria listed by 115 employers surveyed in a study on unemployment conducted by the National Beanomic Action Council, the top three were soft skills: good communications, being presentable and having a reasonable grasp of general knowledge, Academic performance only came eighth. "The key criteria employers look for in potential hires are a good command of English, a good attitude and a strong work ethic," says Suresh Thiru, vice-president of operations at online recruitment company JobStreet.com. "Many are unable to secure a good job because their English is poor,” he adds. Marie Lam, country manager of employment agency, Adecco Group - Malaysia concurs with this by stating that most graduates generally find it hard to communicate, have poor computer skills and are unable to intcract with colleagues and people from other races. They also fail to display team spirit and face difficulties in adapting to the job * market, :[eas sue aang elake dae Employers look for in “Graduates - = z o and the Ritibutes [1.0 introduction. [et packground of study = “The_istue_of unemployment among graduates (are becoming a_norm in our country: The number of —unem ployed graduates 2re_increasing ana becoming — —— oon, . fecording te saa ; = te define the ottributes emplo leak for in _- graduates - a “_ = La Scope of study — — ____-—. This_study_investigated on the number sf | _unemplayed graduates end identified the reasans- for unemployment - Beside this . this shady also toticed inte the attributes employers took for in graduates done in a duration of a month ¢ is. mpoth we chosena AGP Ne 3 | i ( F i it i pl adaa ttt | | jae ; e He ss) Staiatens _——__aill_be_ meee: Emer Ls Conclusion. a = ee Bese it is hoped that thm this_study Various i —— copilot tps iat git git ="| nagpmaman #608265, in eon 2.0 methodology thoughout Malaysia were randomly selected. ger Theougheet “the $000 employers, 1860 were aos males and 1150 were females. They are from —Wacinus_races with 1200 malays , 100 chinese . _— ! 600 200 of other races. SAI a eT | ja questionaires and interviews. This shady __ indudes poimary and Secondary data» 2.3.) Prim a i-. Questionaires : [Sagal d iat eel thmugh observatien « It is pilot tested on ——_—__. efter‘ flat an | it [al Ae makina’ Sine ond Se hedivided . inte four a) Persenal | : »)_Numbex of unesp ley +2) Reasins for _unemple[staan tata , {pte le ES gexec cas ism. a agar Guestionaires were a : plete samples ata, after aaa Se the. == eeeerar Oo as [SE =s “Ee aa ata an scussions same om He, Spee 4 [5.1 Number of ‘womb nen Beales Mayen. i Le C gare Li Me of en P a yo as [pads flap candela nce el ptt el wdh— r3_fom_2902 fo _2006- There t Cos amen increase men numbers from 2000 _ te 2006. L__ _2aps _aanb_recerded the highest aunt sf unuanplaged graduates. emauntiag. amounting to 80.000. 2005 saw o tessec _mumber which is 18000. 2003 and 2004 recorded +he raduates _ 52900 respectively: 2002 shows thé Ipwest number * which is -40000- a | as Ge sen clearly see, the numbers ef unemiple graduates ee oe ee Graduates nowadays ee . fi i I eter a en with the ee skills Y aitiale SS if aaa ae ee pant should be’ cause of concer.to, s¢eenganaan. 9606 26 ; i 3.2 Reasons for Une ploy ment. Es ae - carts : ____Figure 2+ Reasons ‘ie anem Lo ment “ —Hy RN Figure 2 isthe reasons for unemployment - rad, there af six reasons namely . weak. = rs command M english - peor social etiquette » demand tos_much pay + degrees not relevant - too choosy and no vacancies zs _ Weak commend _oa_engiisi recorded as the maid reason for unemployment with $611 This is followed by 36*/e stating the reasons for unemployment is peor sociol etiquette . 32°12 demand foo much _p "fo ce t relevant 23 fo te choosy an tostiy_ Mt le_stabing, no Vacancies - _ —_Thb_market this'days are_very compettive, onty the best candidates will be offered a -jsb- A goad command _ih_english_is very important as it is the. _ medium of communication m interview. According to _ Suresh Thiru, “ The key criteria employers loele Res peteatial hires are a geod command of English . a geod attitude and o strong werk ethic.” (Abdel Razak , 200) ___in short, the main.ceason far vnemploy ment is weal. commend m English - It iS vey pivetal to have & geod command i English to secure a yee33 mae gs an , Graduates. eo eee _ Tale L: “attributes “Employers took. $r in, Graduates = — — ranked trom |= Mist bayeeenat toS-beast _ ——Impertant) = _ —— Toole L ahaws tne aitributes employers. look for ia a jaades- In general _, sthere are § odmbutes which ae oa ak experience , communication skills goed werk _ ethics (altitude - personality and academic qualiti aaisn » elena work experience ts ranked first_as the major ee attributes employers toe for in graduates - This is = i followed by communication skills which axe ranked send. Thirdly are_qood work ethics | attitudes, fallewed by as! py Last bud net tesst is academic qualification. _ The majs patibudes em players look forare relevant werk experience. Employers: watts their empleyees fo _ cs be efficient_and know how todo their wock effectively. _ fis we knew, groduades ore cxenination based pad very factiy has hands oq practicel. “ Rote lear: and on _ emphasis on examinatens tastead of prack ca Skills. howe also woade it dif cult for local salstetip po b satisty employers 4 Phang» 2004) _ as sts: 3 in conclusion. relent werk: experience is tre most dnpestant scabs that pepe look fac in, free eee St fe!concluded thot © __ 7 1. the numbers of unempte! ytd qraduates_ace on the _ rise_and 2066 recorded Nike hightst_aumbece ob — ed graduates . have @ weak command m English 0 Ji _ Relevant were _ sxpercnce a the wat ts _— olin butes that employers look far in graduates. the moia reaion t is qroduates _ = However ‘ es_abudy hos it's limitation - the data “were collected foom_3000 employers . It did not _ _include employees / groduates im the research - 5.9 Recommendifiens - gs a pased_en: the conclusions of this research there are_seweral recemmendationsto-be made. § ____ __Ministny of Human Resource con plan out courses ——for_these graduates te take and +. give them —— ____more peated! training and expedence. -ii-_Univer sity” should. —tmphasize eaglish language as. _. the main medium_of study ond teaching __ z University Should have a longer period ) — _ industna training for tatir students — iv. _All_reteveont parties should be aware and be concern of this _{ssua aad_beninsterm for ideas +2 selve tt ssa 5_suygested that future research be donz on the “same jepic but it Showd Jake Inte account the dato froma es ee _m vive - it: