‘Make internships integral in tertiary education’

Timothy Gobah & Deborah Oluwamuyiwa Education Jul - 02 - 2018 , 10:16

A Lecturer at the University of Ghana Business School, Professor Bob Hinson, has underscored the need for internships to be a compulsory part of the university education system.

He said internships were a means to bridge the gap between the theoretical learning in school and the practical aspect needed to create value in the job market, adding that it provided students with the necessary skills and the real-world experience that was needed to get the edge in the job market.

“Every university should put systems in place to support on the job training by building counselling centres so students can be put into formal mentorship programmes to enable them to have a sense of how to apply the theories to have value in the job market,” he stated.

Prof. Hinson gave the advice while addressing delegates at the opening ceremony of the 2018 African Youth Festival (AYF), which was on the theme: “1 Direction,” at the University of Cape Coast.

He advised the youth to willingly serve under mentors in order to get the required skills needed for a better future.

“As youth, you must be willing to start from the scratch by being good apprentices before you can become good masters, because apprenticeship is a prerequisite for mastery,” he said.

Entrepreneurship

Prof. Hinson said it was necessary for the youth to be entrepreneurial and creative to maximise opportunities to meet pressing needs.

He said with an interest in entrepreneurship, the youth could start small businesses and then proceed to build big businesses in the future.

“Take your eyes off blue and white-collar jobs and become entrepreneurs right from your school days and with time and discipline, you will become masters of your own,” he added.

African Youth Festival

The African Youth Festival (AYF) is an international convention of the youth organised yearly by the Full Gospel Business Men’s Fellowship International (FGBMFI).

The festival, which was held for the first time in Africa, had in attendance over 400 youth from Ghana, Nigeria, Togo, DR Congo, Gabon, Burkina Faso, Benin, Cote d’Ivoire and delegates from Costa Rica.

Aim

The Chairman for Media and Publicity Team of AYF, Mr Raymond Abaifaah, said the aim of the festival was to equip the next generation of global leaders with the right skills for the 21st century.

He said it was also a platform for creating greater unity among emerging leaders.

Mr Abaifaah called on the youth to live principled lives, saying: “If you want to make it in life, you must follow the laid down rules and live by principles”.

Social media

The Provost of the College of Agriculture and Natural Sciences, University of Cape Coast, Professor Livingstone Sam-Amoah, advised the youth not to depend on social media to solve their problems.

He said whenever they encountered challenges they should share them with counsellors and people with the right expertise, rather than putting it on social media and getting wrong advice from peers.