The Marine Skills Centre has launched a drive to ensure the next generation of marine industry workers have the skills they need to succeed at work.
Young people are to be taught basics like time management and teamwork as a response to industry demand for more ‘work-ready’ employees.
The Marine Skills Centre, based in Woolston, Southampton, echoes the industry’s opinion that while young people need hands-on skills and academic knowledge, they also need simple, yet vital, employability skills to get ahead.
From this September the centre is introducing employability modules into all of its marine courses. The modules will show young people how to manage their time, work in a team and adapt to the workplace.
Tom Demuth, manager of The Marine Skills Centre, said: “We have always been careful to work very closely with the marine industry and aim be at the forefront of what they require from their employees. The result of our latest discussions was that young people starting out need the less tangible skills in time management and interacting with colleagues and, in response, we have been quick to incorporate this into our curriculum as standard.”
Mike Chalkley, Engineering Director at Griffon Hoverworks which has just recruited 20 apprentices through the centre, said: “As an employer, it’s important to know your staff have the ‘soft skills’ as well as the technical ability to do their job, so we welcome this move to incorporate employability into all courses at the Marine Skills Centre. Hopefully other colleges around the country will follow suit and the UK will have an even more well-rounded workforce.”
The Marine Skills Centre is run by City College Southampton and works closely with the marine industry through its Marine Advisory Board, which provides invaluable industry input into the development of the curriculum for marine students.
To find out more about courses visit www.southampton-city.ac.uk/marine.
