Thirushen Odayar, Umgungundlovu TVET College
Thirushen Odayar proposes that the marketing team of TVET colleges plays a major role in the task of interfacing with companies. They have to meet with employers, seeking clarification on what employers require from students. This helps to create partnerships and provides feeder pathways into industry. Due to the large number of students seeking employment, employers don’t need to actively source students from TVET colleges. Most firms rely on word-of-mouth from current staff, social media platforms or recruitment agencies. That is why it is so important for marketing teams to create relationships and be part of employer networks. Colleges with a strong marketing team have better throughput rates and more successful placement history with employers. There is a widespread perception that, because of problems with the reliability of the national examination system, those with N6 emerge with low capabilities, so that employers prefer to turn to private training institutes to fill their vacancies. Recent partnerships at colleges, however, show that where companies work through the marketing team, and then with lecturers, students emerge with the capabilities required for employment.
