DOLE intensifies region-wide career guidance efforts

The Department of Labor and Employment is intensifying this summer its career guidance and employment coaching at the regional level. DOLE Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said this is a proactive measure to help students identify college courses, skills, and competencies towards the right careers. “At this time of the year, the intensified career guidance seminars will help ensure that students, who will be future jobseekers and who will eventually be part of the country’s workforce, are being prepared prior to their graduation,” Baldoz said. "Right courses, coupled with other relevant labor market information, will eventually make ‘skills-fit’ and 'job-ready graduates," she added. DOLE regional offices had prepared as early as January for the graduation season, coordinating with Public Employment Service Offices (PESOs) and Guidance Counselors Networks (GCNs) to dtage seminars in high schools and colleges nationwide. The DOLE noted its Cordillera Administrative Region office which conducted “A Glimpse to a College Life” to 673 third- and fourth-year high school students in far-flung schools in Kalinga-Apayao. DOLE Kalinga Field Office head Dr. Avelina Manganip led the activity by orienting participants on the DOLE’s programs and services, such as the Skills Registry System and the Special Program for Employment of Students. Manganip also discussed the 12 Key Employment Generators and the emerging industries of the DOLE’s JobsFit 2020 to guide the students in determining what careers to take. In Marinduque, the DOLE Regional Office 4-B conducted a series of Career Information Guidance seminars before 1,460 students at the Saint Mary’s College of Marinduque, Ilaya National High School, Cawit National High School, Marinduque Academy, and Marinduque National High School. Meanwhile, 3,819 graduating students in 15 different schools in Misamis Oriental, including Puerto National High School, Pilgrim Christian College and Lourdes College also benefited from the DOLE Region 10 office’s career guidance campaign. Misamis Oriental PESO Manager Kathleen Kate Sorilla discussed professionalism in the workplace and ways in developing highly marketable skills. In South Cotabato, 151 students of San Miguel National High School got a preview of in-demand and hard-to-fill jobs. The DOLE Regional Office 5 trained 18 provincial PESO managers and 11 guidance counselors to develop a strong team of career coaches. DOLE Regional Office 7 followed a similar route, training its 344 district and school guidance counselors in the Visayas through a JobsFit Advocacy Training. "With the training, we aim to enable our career guidance team to answer school-to-job challenges encountered by graduates in the region and to discuss in depth career prospects with our students," said Regional Director Gloria Tango. — LBG, GMA News