Students training up for jobs that aren't there, SA Opposition says

Hundreds of students are signing up for training in industries where Government projections show there will be fewer or, in some cases, no jobs, the State Opposition says.

A list of 55 courses put out for consultation by the State Government shows student enrolments for the 2012-13 year exceed estimated annual job openings in at least 30.

The related occupations include hospitality worker, fitness instructor, travel agent, real estate agent, office manager, safety inspector, library assistant and florist.

In one of the most over-subscribed courses, there are 250 students enrolled across two courses in furniture-making despite government estimates there are no job openings in that field.

The list, dated February 2013, proposes to put a cap on many of the courses and maintain caps on others in a bid to deter students from choosing training in areas where they will struggle to gain employment.

Opposition education spokesman David Pisoni said the government had wasted money and students' time allowing them to enrol in courses that would be of no use to them once they graduated.

"They should have looked at where the demand was and actually targeted the training to suit industry," he said.

"A lot of money has been spent training people up, more than we need, in areas where we don't need anybody and not (in areas) where we haven't got anywhere near the number of workers we need."

Last month Skills Minister Tom Kenyon said the government was assessing course offerings and funding to better align industry demand with student choices.

He said from this year, workers will be able to complete "skill sets" in topics such as touch-screen technology, hybrid electric vehicle inspection and servicing, NBN wireless installation, airconditioning design and disability support.

However, other popular courses such as fitness, retail and customer services would be closed to new enrolments because there there are not enough jobs on offer.

"We will continue to monitor, review and make changes to avoid an oversupply of skills in areas that do not meet industry skill needs," Mr Kenyon said at the time.

Source: The Herald Sun, 10 January 2013