Help for ITE students to market themselves

Students from the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) are being taught how to brand and market themselves to potential employers.

The ITE and professional networking business LinkedIn Singapore have entered into a three-year partnership, the first such partnership among institutes of higher learning in Singapore.

Under the memorandum of understanding signed yesterday, LinkedIn will introduce its online learning platform - LinkedIn Learning, which offers video courses taught by industry experts in software, creative and business skills - to ITE students and staff.

Staff can attend annual workshops to learn about product features and in-demand courses to help them create a better digital learning experience for students.

Students will have access to various learning paths on digital and future skills. Upon completion of these LinkedIn courses, students can add these skills and certifications to their profiles.

Year 2 ITE student Ajmal Sulthan Abdul Kader, who is doing a Nitec in aerospace machining technology, said he attended a LinkedIn training course by one of his ITE lecturers last month and he learnt to navigate and make use of the networking site.

He also met a mentor at a virtual career conversation session who told him she had been introduced to her job through a connection on LinkedIn.

"It shows that networking is really important," said Ajmal.

The chief executive of ITE, Ms Low Khah Gek, said it was important for students to learn to use digital technology to optimise their personal branding and career planning.

"While they are well-trained in hard skills, they need to market themselves online. On LinkedIn, they can inject their personality into their profiles, highlight their skills, interests and experiences," said Ms Low.

"They can also do better research on companies and the jobs they offer. Moreover, they will meet and network with people of similar professional interests. Such connections can help them stay abreast of industry trends, and build credibility through endorsements and testimonials from their contacts."

LinkedIn's managing director and vice-president for Asia-Pacific and China, Mr Olivier Legrand, said the collaboration aimed to help students build strong networks so they could have access to good opportunities, and learn and cultivate the skills they needed for their intended career paths.

"This is even more important in the current climate, as many may be facing challenges with networking, upskilling and career opportunities," he added.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on June 16, 2020, with the headline Help for ITE students to market themselves. Subscribe