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To cite this document:
Timothy Tunde Oladokun and Timothy Oluwafemi Ayodele, (2015),"Students’ perception of the relevance of work experience scheme to real estate education in Nigeria", Property Management, Vol. 33, Iss 1, pp. 4 - 18
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STUDENTS’ PERCEPTION OF THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF STUDENTS INDUSTRIAL WORK EXPERIENCE SCHEME TO REAL ESTATE EDUCATION IN NIGERIA By Timothy Tunde Oladokun and Timothy Olorunfemi Ayodele Department of Estate Management Obafemi Awolowo University Ile ife, Osun State, Nigeria. Contact author Tel: +234 (0) 8023152198
Contact author e mail:
[email protected]
Abstract Purpose: The paper sought to evaluate the contribution of students industrial work experience scheme (SIWES) to real estate education in Nigeria. Design Methodology/approach: Primary data were collected with the aid of questionnaire served on 182 parts 3 ad 4 students of Estate management and valuation, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife, Nigeria. The descriptive methods of mean and proportion method were used to determine the factors that are considered could contribute to real estate education in Nigeria. Finding: The result shows that SIWES is an integral part of real estate education and that it helps the students to acquire behavioural skills in addition to acquiring necessary experience required to set up private practice upon completion. Research Limitation/ Implication: Obtaining the perception of students alone could make the findings one sided and bias. Further detailed research targeted at the employers of labour will provide a balanced view. Also, extending further studies to incorporating students of more Universities will be more exciting. Originality/Value: This paper is an effort at stimulating the interest of other researchers in conducting similar research to cover all institutions in Nigeria as well as obtaining the perception of the employers of labour in this respect. Keyword: Real Estate, Education, Industry, Industrial Training, Students. Paper Type: Research Paper
STUDENTS’ PERCEPTION OF THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF STUDENTS INDUSTRIAL WORK EXPERIENCE SCHEME TO REAL ESTATE EDUCATION IN NIGERIA 2
1.0
Introduction
The need to make real estate education relevant to the economy is a growing concern among many academics and industrial specialist. Property courses need to contain both education and training (Small and Karantonis 2001). The common impression is that theoretical knowledge alone would not usually prepare an educated person for the world of work (Mafe, 2010). According to the author, in order to function efficiently, the worker or productive individual must not only be knowledgeable but must also be versatile in the application of skills to perform defined jobs or work. The symbiosis
that occurs between academic learning and professional experience was recognised by Crew in relation to post graduate students. (Crews, 2004) The two sides, one producing and the other utilizing the work force, need a common ground to operate so that such synergy will result in adequate supply of relevant personnel for all the sectors of the economy (Ayofe and Ajetola, 2009). Consequently, there are two basic forms of learning education and training – both of which are indispensable to the productive world of work and the functioning of society today (Mafe, 2010). Harnessing those resources and adopting an “inclusive” approach, according to Crews (2004) will bring a bonus of additional benefits. Page identified the importance of professional socialisation achieved at university as being “the body of knowledge required and an introduction to valuation practice and values”, but that the extent to which these aspects of professional socialisation were further developed in the workplace was dependant on the firm and its corporate governance procedures, interaction with other valuation professionals and range of experience offered (Page, 2007).
The contemporary global business world requires graduates of the higher institutions of learning to apply the science learnt in the University to transform the economy and ignite development in the country. However, industry in developing countries like Nigeria often criticizes that existing university curricula fall short to tackle the practical issues in the industry (Ayofe and Ajetola, 2009). There seems to be little confidence on the products of the higher institutions of learning as many of the industry practitioners perceived them as half baked. Many of the graduates are seen as not being employable since the industry expects the universities to have trained their future employees with the latest technology, which many of the graduates seems not to possess.
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Whereas, today’s business and competitive world requires the development of new real estate courses which reflect the knowledge and skills that would help students to prepare for the challenges they may face when entering the real estate industry (Tu, Weinstein, Worzala & Lukens, 2009) the quality of graduates in African countries like Nigeria led to a spate of criticisms of graduates from the higher institutions of learning as lacking practical skills in general and, in particular, the relevant production skills needed by industry (Uvah, 2004, Mafe, 2010).
The growing concern among the industrialists that graduates of institutions of higher learning lack adequate practical background studies preparatory for employment in industries could be attributable to the high rate of unemployment in developing countries, with its attendant’s social vices. As a means towards improving the standard of education in developing countries like Nigeria, the government had directed its effort at the formation of Students Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES) by industrial training fund (ITF) in 1993/1994 (Information and Guideline for SIWES, 2002). SIWES is a skill Training programme designed to expose and prepare students of Agriculture, Engineering, Technology, Environmental, Science, Medical Sciences and pure and applied science for the industrial work situation which they likely to meet after graduation. Duration of SIWES is four months in Polytechnics at the end of NDI, four months in College of Education at the end of NCE II and six months in the Universities at the end of 300 or 400 levels depending on the discipline (Information and Guideline for SIWES, 2002).
The importance of regular feedback from students and the property profession has been recognised by (Callanan & McCarthy, 2003). The students, as major stakeholders in effective implementation of SIWES have a vital role to play. Whether or not the intended objectives of SIWES would be achieved depends on their perception as well as their involvement and /or participation in the programme. If wrongly perceived, the students might not see it as a part of their training and hence would not likely be involved as required. A proper understanding of the contribution (s) of SIWES to their professional development would engender more commitment to the programme, resulting in the production of well prepared and fully equipped graduates that will meet the requirements of the industry. Industry players, local and foreign investors who are interested in the emerging African market like Nigeria would need the conviction that the market will supply them with skilled labour relevant to contemporary practice. The result will encourage the injection of more direct foreign investments into the country. Thus, the question of how well SIWES contributes to real estate education in Nigeria remains unanswered. This study will provide an answer to this. The study seeks to evaluate the perception of Nigerian undergraduates about the contribution of SIWES to real estate education in Nigeria. The paper is structured into five sections. Following the introduction is 4
the review of literature. Section 3 contains the research method and data requirements. The analysis and interpretation of data are contained section 4 while section 5 contains the conclusion.
2.0
Literature Review
A number of literature exist in respect of the need for the training and relevance of educational real estate. In Nigeria, studies such as{ Small and Karantonis (2001), Crews (2004), Musil,
(2005), Blake and Susilawati (2009), Oladiran, Benjamin and Aiyelabowo (2012), Oyeniyi (2011), Ekunke (2008), Yusuf, Ajidagba, Agbonna and Olumorin (2010), Olugbenga (2009), Wodi and Dokubo (2009) and Ayofe and Ajetola (2009), Joanna Poon, Mike Hoxley, are worthy of note.
Small and Karantonis (2001) examined the challenges of balancing the provision of education and training within vocational courses in Land Economy. The author acknowledged the importance of applied sciences in University education and hence argued that university level courses differentiate themselves from technical training programmes by equipping students with background and depth considerably beyond what is necessary for a particular occupational role. While noting that a technically trained person could be immediately employable and productive, he may be incapable of responding to the challenges of change or to the interpretation of the relationship between his or her occupation and the environment within which he works. The authors recommended that property courses should contain both education and training.
Crews (2004) examined the effectiveness of real estate programme in creating a robust academic and adult learning environment capable of meeting the needs of the students who require up-skilling but have limited time for study. The study is conducted as a result of the scarcity of professional real estate sales person resulting from lack of interest by salesmen in advanced real estate education despite several unsuccessful calls by those who have earlier acquired the training. The author recommended innovative and flexible modes of learning suitable for a nation-wide, busy work force. Musil, (2005) examined university and real estate industry’s pedagogical approaches to real estate education and practice in . The paper utilized university business school instructors in real estate, business and entrepreneurship for real estate practitioner professional development to propose an advanced level real estate continuing education MBA programme;.
Blake and Susilawati (2009) explored the views of students, employers, and industry representative bodies as to the preparedness of QUT UD40 students for entry into the professional workforce in Australia. Adopting a qualitative research method aided with guided interview guide, the students and employers consistently perceived that the ‘transition out’ of university education to the profession was made more seamless by an 5
integration of academic studies and professional work experience from the intermediate stages of the property program. In the UK, studies of Willow Fuchs (2011) and Joanna Poon (2012) have addressed the relevance of the skills being acquired in the Universities to the industry. In specific, the study of Poon, Hoxley and Fuchs (2011) evaluated the real estate stakeholders perspectives of gaps between the employers' expectations of real estate graduates and what real estate graduates considered that they have attained during their studies vis – a – vis the content of Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) accredited real estate courses. Among others, the study found that practical experience is considered to be missing from courses even though most universities would not see this as one of their principal areas of responsibility. Joanna Poon (2012) examined human resource managers’ view on the employability skills of real estate graduates in the UK. The study analysed data obtained from three sample of human resource managers, real estate employers and real estate course directors in 31 knowledge areas, 20 skills and 21 attributes, alongside a list of additional competencies made by graduates and employers. In Nigeria, Oladokun (2012) evaluated the training needs of Nigerian Estate surveyors for corporate real estate Management practice. The study documented the need for the acquisition of more practical skills to aid effective practice after graduation.
Boyd, Amidu and Smith (2013) examined the activities that constitute the body of knowledge of real estate practitioners in the UK. The authors collected data using a modified Delphi technique with a panel of real estate experts practicing in the UK to deliver an anonymous consensus–building process using two rounds of questionnaire. The study revealed that factors such as: network with businesses, clients, and other professionals to be aware of new opportunities; develop new professional products and services; discuss briefs with clients to identify their needs; and ensure all aspects of operational work comply with internal processes and professional standards, are required for effective practice as against a situation where real estate academics place higher importance on higher order cognition activities such as offering teaching and advice for students and developing practitioners.
Researchers have also evaluated the success or otherwise of SIWES, a government intervention at bridging the gap that exist between education and practice in developing countries like Nigeria. Oladiran, Benjamin and Aiyelabowo (2012) examined the challenges of industrial work experience scheme in developing the workforce among youths in south west Nigeria. With focus on the federal colleges offering technical vocational courses and polytechnics in South-West Nigeria, the author served questionnaires on 320 respondents. The study found, among others: absence of approved job specification for the courses; inadequate participation of students in skill acquiring project and poor supervision of students. The study recommended that ITF should embark on an efficient
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implementation strategy to achieving objectives of SIWES. However, the focus of the study is not on real estate education.
Oyeniyi (2011) examined SIWES and the dynamics of sustainable skills acquisition and utilization in Nigeria with a view to determining the viability or otherwise of government continuing investment in the scheme. Adopting the ex-post factor research design, the study and found that SIWES has contributed significantly to sustainable skills acquisition and had significantly enhanced the interdependence of various stakeholders on acquisition and utilization of technologically-based skills. Ekunke (2008) examined the problem of manpower production in vocational technical education in Nigeria. The study identified over reliance on imported technology, ineffective organization of industrial attachment, attitude of industries, poor state of training institutions, and insufficient data on manpower needs as major problems. The absence of such studies in respect of real estate education necessitates this study. Yusuf, Ajidagba, Agbonna and Olumorin (2010) investigated the effect of students’ evaluation of teaching on university teachers’ instructional practices in Nigeria. The result of questionnaires survey administered on 326 respondents drawn from three Nigerian universities revealed that although lecturers generally do not accept students’ evaluation of their teaching, they perceived that the students’ evaluation of teaching would bring about positive changes in their instructional practices. Among others, it is recommended that students’ evaluation of classroom teaching should be introduced, made mandatory and conducted regularly in the Nigerian universities.
Olugbenga (2009) carried out a survey on the views of students in the three departments of the School of Applied Science, Nuhu Bamalli Polytechnic, Zaria, Nigeria about the adequacy of the skills acquired during their participation in SIWES. The result of the analysis is that the skills acquired are inadequate due to the short duration of the programme as well as lack of modern facilities in their place of industrial training.
Wodi and Dokubo (2009) evaluated the extent to which the agencies involved in the operation and management of SIWES function to achieve the objectives of the programme. In all, 240 students, 18 staff randomly selected from 5 institutions involved in SIWES in Rivers State, Nigeria in addition to 2 staff of ITF from Area Office Port Harcourt were involved. Lack of adequate supervision, non signing of necessary materials like ITF Form 8 and students’ log-books at their places of attachment, difficulties of students in getting placement, unnecessary delay in the payment of students and supervisors’ allowance among other were areas of weaknesses revealed.
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Ayofe and Ajetola (2009), examined the skills gaps between the industrial application of Information Technology and university academic programmes (curriculum). The study identified a wide gap between the two and suggested the possibilities of exploring a new role for the universities and employers of labour.
The above studies are efforts at evaluating the relevance of industrial training on other professions. Studies on the impact of SIWES on real estate education in African countries like Nigeria are still missing. Since there is lack of empirical study in respect of the contribution of SIWES to real estate education in Nigeria, this study will fill the gap that exists in the literature in this respect.
3.0
Research Method and Data
The study utilized a questionnaire survey method to obtain data from a set of one hundred and eighty two (182) students of the department of Estate management, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife, Nigeria comprising sixty nine (69) part four (4) and one hundred and thirteen (113) part 3 students. Data was obtained to evaluate their perception of the relevance and contribution of SIWES programme to enhancing the training of Estate management and valuation in the country. The students, who were in part four (the pen ultimate year in the University) and part three observed their mandatory six (6) months and three (3) months Industrial Training in 2011/2012 academic session respectively. A well structured questionnaire was distributed to all the one hundred and eighty two (182) students who partook of the exercise. They were made to fill the questionnaire when they returned to school. The administration of questionnaire was done during a lecture session hence it was possible to retrieve all. Though the population size of 182 could be seen tl be small relative to the size of the country, the result, nevertheless, would be useful. It will engender interest in making a more detailed and comprehensive study in this area The questionnaire was in two sections. Section one asked questions about the location of the IT placement, the adequacy of the orientation programme, the modality for and the reasons for choosing the place of IT and the evaluation of the adequacy of the available facilities. Section two asked questions about the perception of SIWES programme and its contributions to real estate education as well as the challenges of SIWES, in general.
4.0
Analysis and Interpretation of Data
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In presenting the results of the questionnaire survey, the paper examines at the first instance, the characteristics of the respondents and secondly the perception of the students in respect of the impact of SIWES on real estate education. The results of the analysis are contained in the following Tables 18. 4.1
Characteristics of the Respondents
The choice of IT placement is discretionary as the students choose locations of convenience thus making the geographical spread of the exercise to cover many geographical entities/regions of the country. The geographical spread of the IT placement covering about six states of the federation are as follows: Federal Capital Territory, Abuja 7%, Oyo State 18%, Kwara State, 4%, Lagos State 59%, Ogun State 5%, Osun State 5%, and Rivers state 2%.
,
Majority of the firms were established five (5) years ago with an average number of five (5) branches.
4.2
Adequacy of Orientation Programme
The students were asked to rank the adequacy of the orientation programme conducted for them by the Industrial Training Coordinating Unit (ITCU) in preparation for the IT. Their responses are contained in Table1. Table 1: ADEQUACY OF ORIENTATION PROGRAMME Degree of Adequacy Frequency Percentage Not Adequate 11 5.8 Moderately Adequate 111 60.9 Very Adequate 60 33.3 Total 182 100 Source: Field Survey (2012) The responses are that a majority (60.9%) of the respondents considered the orientation as being moderately adequate. 33.3% of the respondents considered the orientation programme as being adequate while the remaining 5.8% rated it as being inadequate. In sum, the assessment of a total of 94.2% rating the orientation programme as being adequate is a reflection of the commitment and experience displayed by the officials of both the ITCU and Industrial Training Fund area office in Ibadan saddled with the responsibility of giving guidance to students who are preparing for IT. 4.3
Mode of Securing Placement
Questions were asked as to the mode of securing IT placement. The responses are contained in Table 2. 9
Table 2: MODE OF SECURING PLACEMENT Mode Frequency Referred by Relatives 95 Referred by ITCU 69 On Request by the 18 organisation Total 182 . Source: Field Survey (2012)
Percentage 52 38 10 100%
The result in Table 2 shows that majority (52%) of the students were referred to the place of IT by relatives. 38% of the students who could not secure placement on their own were connected to the place of IT by the ITCU of the school. While the remaining 10% secured placement on the request of the various companies/practitioners. The indication, in the country,, is that students are left on their own to search for and secure IT placement since neither the government nor the school have sufficient data base of organisation that could immediately absorb students for IT. 4.4
Determinants of Choice of IT Placement
The responses as to the question, ‘what influenced your choice of IT placement’ is contained in Table 3. TABLE 3: DETERMINANTS OF CHOICE OF IT PLACEMENT Degree of Adequacy Frequency Percentage Interest 5 2.9 Nearness to home 11 5.8 Company’s ability to pay 3 1.4 Company Reputation 20 11.5 Company ability to impact 143 78.3 knowledge Total 182 100 Source: Field Survey (2012) The results are that, in making a choice of IT placement, the students generally considered the ability of the company to impact knowledge on them. This is as contained in the responses of 78.3% of the respondents. Equally, an additional 11% of the students are influenced by the reputation of the organization in the industry. Other responses are that 1.4% of the students considered the ability of the company to pay, 5.8 considered the nearness of the company to their homes, while the remaining 3% are influenced by students’ personal interest for the company. 4.5
Adequacy of Facilities
The adequacy of the available facilities is an indication of the appropriateness of the exposure and knowledge that candidates can have. The students’ responses to the adequacy of four common organizational resources of Human Resources, Working Equipment, Information Technology and 10
Transportation/Vehicles are contained in Table 4. The evaluation was done using the 3 Likert scale of 1= Not adequate, 2= adequate and 3 = very adequate. TABLE 4: ADEQUACY OF FACILITIES Facilities
Mean
Ranking
Human Resources
2.42
1
Working Equipment
2.30
2
Information Technology
2.14
3
Transportation/Vehicle
2.12
4
Source: Field Survey (2012) The results are that the available human resources in the organizations are rated adequate with a mean figure of 2.42. This is not surprising as most private organisations would only employ people that are skilled enough to carry our professional activities of the firm. The available working equipment was rated as the second most adequate facility with a mean figure of 2.30. The facility, Transportation/Vehicle was rated as the least adequate factor with a mean figure of 2.12. 4.6
Adequacy of Exposure
The students were asked to indicate the level to which the organization that they had IT with exposed them to the four traditional real estate services of Property Valuation, Property Agency, Property Development and Property Management. The evaluation was done using the 3 point Likert scale of 1= Not exposed, 2= exposed and 3 = highly exposed. TABLE 5: ADEQUACY OF EXPOSURE Real Estate Service
Mean
Ranking
Property Management
2.59
1
Property Agency
2.43
2
Property Valuation
1.88
3
Property Development
1.71
4
Source: Field Survey (2012) The result revealed that the students were mostly exposed to property management service. This is ranked first in terms of the exposure and received with a mean figure of 2.59.The involvement in property management could be explained by the fact that it is a more stable and regular service done on a regular basis as against other services like property agency which is one- and -for – all service 11
once a deal is consummated. It could be explained further that the economic meltdown seems to make securing briefs for other services to be difficult. Once a property management brief is secured, subsequent activities in respect of it are continuous ones.
4.7
Perception of SIWES Programme
The students perception of the SIWES programme is a suggestion of the approach and seriousness that would be put into the programme designed to add practical experience to their training. The result of the of the ranking on 5 point Likert scale of 1== Strongly Disagree, 2 =Disagree, 3= Neutral, 4=Agree and 5 = Strongly Agree is contained in Table 6.
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Table 6:
PERCEPTION OF SIWES PROGRAMME
S/N
Mean
Standard Deviation
Variance
SIWES equips students with marketable skills The place of my SIWES is relevant to my course The SIWES placement was secured easily I paid for SIWES training
4.29
.644
.415
2
4.74
.533
.284
1
3.14
1.364
1.861
9
1.30
.880
.774
12
The place of attachment was chosen because, I find it difficult to secure placement in well; established organization Placements are choosing because of personal benefits, such as free accommodation, free transportation. SIWES placement had adequate personnel who involved in the training of the student The place of my SIWES had adequate modern facilities I was supervised adequately by my industrial based supervisor and college supervisor I was given unhindered access to most of the facilities in the place of SIWES I was posted to work in almost all the sections in the place of SIWES The duration of SIWES was enough
1.84
1.244
1.548
10
1.68
1.050
1.103
11
3.52
1.183
1.400
8
3.81
.845
.714
6
4.33
.902
.814
3
3.99
.978
.956
4
3.71
1.226
1.503
7
3.91
1.234
1.522
4
1 2 3 4 5
6
7
8 9
10
11
12
Ranking
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Source: Field Survey (2012) The results are that the students perceived SIWES as being relevant to their academic programme. This is reflected in the variable ‘The place of my SIWES is relevant to my course’ being ranked first with a mean figure of 4.74. The second most important factor is their perception that SIWES equips students with marketing skills. The third ranked factor is that SIWES provided an opportunity for thorough supervision while the fourth ranked factor indicated that SIWES was seen as an opportunity for unrestricted access to the use of facilities that are relevant to the course of study. This reflects the high degree of importance placed on SIWES above normal seeming challenges. The mid ranked factors in the order of importance are ‘The place of my SIWES had adequate modern facilities’, ‘I was posted to work in almost all the sections in the place of SIWES’, ‘SIWES placement had adequate personnel who involved in the training of the student’, and ‘The SIWES placement was secured easily’. These factors relate to their perception of the IT placement office and the available working facilities.
The least ranked factors relate to the reasons for the choice of IT office. They were ranked as follows: ‘the place of attachment was chosen because, I find it difficult to secure placement in well; established organization’, ‘Placements are choosing because of personal benefits, such as free accommodation, free transportation’, and ‘I paid for SIWES training’. Overall, the pattern of rankings where obtaining a place of IT that could give students relevant experience could be as a result of high credit unit of, for instance, 15 units attached to SIWES in the various Universities curriculum of study. 4.8
Impact of SIWES Programme
The students were asked to rank, in the order of importance, what they considered were the impact of SIWES on their academic programme as this is a suggestion of the approach and seriousness that they are likely going to have about SIWES programme designed to add practical experience to their training. The result of the ranking on 5 point Likert scale of 1== Strongly Disagree, 2 =Disagree, 3= Neutral, 4=Agree and 5 = Strongly Agree is contained in Table .
Table 7:
IMPACT OF SIWES PROGRAMME
S/N 1 2
Mean The place of my SIWES help me to acquire good skill Art of working with people in
4.03
Standard Deviation 1.283
3.96
1.230
Variance
Ranking
1.646
1
1.513
4 13
structural setting was acquired. 3 IT taught me to work under strict supervision 4 It exposed me to the art of producing quality work 5 It taught me involvement in Corporate Strategic Planning 6 With experience acquired at SIWES place I can set up my own ventures 7 After the SIWES, I believed I need more industrial exposure, before I can start my own venture 8 The instruction received in school was related to the practices in industry 9 The equipment trained with in school were a replica of the ones found in industry. 10 The school personal attitude to work compared favourably with that of personnel in industry 11 It taught me to work under pressure 12 It taught me personal and official organisation 13 It improved my interpersonal relationship 14 It taught me the art of team work 15 SIWES taught me initiative and independent work. Source: Field Survey (2012)
3.74
1.268
1.607
8
3.81
1.204
1.449
7
3.45
1.409
1.986
10
3.22
1.349
1.820
14
3.38
1.273
1.621
11
3.59
1.075
1.156
9
3.14
1.167
1.361
15
3.28
1.338
1.791
13
3.38 3.91
1.177 1.147
1.385 1.316
11 5
4.01
1.323
1.750
2
4.00 3.91
1.361 1.234
1.853 1.522
3 6
The responses are that, the generality of the students believed that SIWES had substantially helped them to acquire good practical skill. This variable was rated as the highest with a mean figure of 4.03. The second most important factor is that ‘the SIWES programme has improved my inter- personal relationship’ with a mean figure of 4.0. Other factors in the other of importance are: ‘it taught me the art of team work’, and the ‘art of working with people in structural setting was acquired’.
The highest ranked factors relate to the acquisition of behavioural and managerial attributes and competencies required for the efficient running of an organisation. The ranking of the factors as the highest substantiates the need for the inclusion of behavioural sciences and studies in real estate education in developing countries like Nigeria, which is lacking in the current curriculum of studies. The mid-ranked factors are ‘SIWES taught me initiative and independent work’, ‘It exposed me to the art of producing quality work’, ‘IT taught me to work under strict supervision ‘, The instruction received in school was related to the practices in industry’ and ‘It taught me involvement in Corporate Strategic Planning and relate to the acquisition of skills for improved service delivery. This suggests 14
that SIWES programme has imparted qualities and skills in students to make them relevant to the industry and increase their chance of employability. The least ranked factors are: ‘After the SIWES, I believed I need more industrial exposure, before I can start my own venture’, ‘It taught me to work under pressure’, ‘The school personal attitude to work compared favourably with that of personnel in industry’, ‘With experience acquired at SIWES place I can set up my own ventures‘ and ‘the equipment trained with in school were a replica of the ones found in industry’ and relate to the acquisition of skills for entrepreneurship.
4.9
Problems of SIWES Programme
The students were asked to indicate what they considered to be posing challenges to SIWES programme in Nigeria. The result of the ranking, in order of importance, is contained in Table 8. Table 8:
PROBLEMS OF SIWES PROGRAMME
S/N
Mean
Standard Deviation
Variance
Ranking
1
Student Trainee Problem
3.09
1.095
1.198
2
2
Problem of Misconception
3.03
1.000
.999
1
3
Scarcity of Place of Attachment
3.71
1.456
2.121
6
4
Tertiary Institution Problems
3.10
1.031
1.063
3
5
3.55
1.231
1.516
5
6
Problem of Irregular Supervisory Agencies Resource Problem or Funding
3.97
1.188
1.411
7
7
Of
3.17
1.175
1.381
4
Ineffective Organization Industrial Attachment Source: Field Survey (2012)
In the opinion of the students, the top most rated factor is the problem of misconception. While some students perceived it as an opportunity to be relieved of the normal academic rigour and hence put in less degree of seriousness, some employers of labour refused to accept candidates for industrial training owing to the perception that such an attempt will increase their overhead costs, if they would not be paying ‘additional staff’.
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Conclusion
A major conclusion from this study is that SIWES is perceived by the students as an integral part of real estate academic programme in Nigeria. This notion drives the students to look for placement in an organisation where they could acquire requisite exposure and knowledge that are relevant to their study.
Arising from this is that, students play down on the challenges encountered in the course of the programme and placed more on the ‘gains’ of SIWES programme. As a result, students are able to acquire behavioural and marketing skills that are required for entrepreneurial endeavour. With SIWES, students are sufficiently equipped to set up and run their private real estate practice when they graduate.
A major policy implication from the study is the need for the government to adopt policies that will mandate firms to accept students and expose them to the art of professional practice. The government should adopt this as a national policy that will reduce the need for graduates searching for while collar jobs. Since the programme will equip them with skills to set up their own practice and create more jobs, it is capable of reducing joblessness and unemployment to the barest minimum in the country,
The challenge of getting placement by students requires intervention by the institutions. There is the need for the institutions, through its ITCU, to establish strong relationship with the industry so as to assist the students to always easily get placement. It might be of great help for the institution to have data base of firms where students can easily go for industrial training. There should be enough publicity and awareness to the organisations on the associated advantages of accepting students for industrial training. This will not only make them readily employable upon graduation, but will assist them in setting up their own firm, create more jobs and reduce unemployment.
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