Sorry, Not Enough Skills

I have come to the conclusion that one cannot live well without knowing the basics of the financial market. That's why I have made it a priority to begin each morning with reading the New York Times Business section or spend a few minutes watching CNBC.

This is what I frequently hear: "there is plenty of jobs, but not enough skillful workers". Whether you like it or not, it is true that there are plenty of jobs out there. At the same time, there are plenty of college students who graduated with massive debts who have been long struggling to find a job. Can't you see that there is something wrong in here?

Now I am asking who should we blame for this?

Neither Romney nor Obama is responsible.

I blame the schools because program directors do have the rights to monitor and amend their school curriculum as they see fit. To me, it seems that those program directors don't read or simply choose to ignore the reality of the current job market here in the United States.

I am hoping that someone soon recognizes that an overhaul is needed in the current undergraduate curriculum. Perhaps, we can learn from the success of the work that Siemens has been doing in Germany. For years, Siemens has been investing in training German students (Siemens.com). When students do graduate from these training-intensive programs, they are equipped with the skills that they need to succeed in their career.

I can guarantee you that most school would be ashamed of themselves if they survey students about their job experience or status one to three years post graduation. It is hard to imagine or even see a student struggling to find a job while companies are outsourcing jobs overseas because of our unattractive workforce. Before we went to college, we were advised that a four-year degree was a visa to a good life once one graduates. Given the challenges that our students face today, can this statement still hold?

The time has now come for the university system to put student first. Instead of fighting over increasing tuition fees, you (school officials) should instead devote similar energy at designing curriculum that would prepare our students for a successful career.

Our students can no longer afford to be part of the $1 trillion student debt statistics. Going forward, school officials will need to focus on integrating intensive internship programs in their curriculum. When this is done and if properly done, companies would no longer need to outsource science and engineering jobs to foreign markets. Those jobs would instead stay here in the United States thus putting more Americans to work.

Looking forward to your comments.

Thanks

W. Sainval