We Ask a Professional Recruiter if a University Degree Is Still Relevant

In report by NST, YB Rafizi was quoted as saying:

"The case is different now. I once interviewed top-class young graduates five or six years ago. Based on some research that I want to share, especially regarding young talent, most of the time employers hire you not because of your degree.

"A degree only proves that you have a brain. When someone is hired, the employers see the qualities that they can be independent, have their own initiative, and that they are balanced."

This comes alongside reports that almost half of the 2021 SPM school leavers were not furthering their studies. To find out if a degree is all that it's cracked up to be, we spoke to Lucas Ang, the Associate Director at PERSOLKELLY Malaysia, a staffing and recruitment provider.

He's got more than 10 years experience in recruitment and he helps his clients source for candidates alongside his team. His job has allowed him to speak to universities that train students as well as employers who are meeting this current generation of workers. So, are degrees relevant?

Rojak Daily: To start, what percentage of your users are SPM holders only?

Lucas Ang: Less than 10% are SPM holders but that’s because of the nature of our business. Most of the time, our clients require white collar workers which, most of the time will require a degree.

RD: So, you need a degree to become a white collar worker?

LA: Not, really actually. Basically if the job doesn't require professional certification—like ACCA with accounting, lawyers and doctors—I think SPM holders can apply for a job. So it depends on employers whether they will consider you or not.

As long as there's no strict requirements like knowing a certain programming language, or a certificate, (having just an SPM cert) shouldn't be a big road block.

RD: What kinds of jobs are the youth in general seeking these days?

LA: In general they don't really care what they're going to do, but they're more concerned about what the company can provide them in terms of flexibility, learning opportunities, or exposure. They have different aspirations for sure, but they're focused more on company culture rather than specific roles.

RD: Within that, are there certain industries that are more popular perhaps?

LA: I think IT for sure because they know there's a demand and they can demand a higher pay... Digital marketing, anything to do with social media because that's what they like. Definitely not audit, because I remember when I was a graduate more than 10 years ago, people from accounting were dying to get into the Big 4 accounting firms (EY, KPMG, Deloitte, and PWC). But nowadays, even the Big 4 are having difficulty hiring.

RD: Skills mismatch has been quoted as one of the reasons why there are fewer investments in the country. In your experience, what exactly are those skills?

LA: First of all let's touch on what's not mentioned which is the soft skills and the social skills. We spoke with some of the universities and leaders who received feedback from employers that most of the time, the interns or young talent they receive, have the knowledge to perform the job, but when it comes to social skills, they do not know how to deal or cooperate with colleagues.

That becomes a major stumbling block that prevents them from entering the job market. Secondly, on skills, our education modules are setup maybe 5 or 10 years ago and you'll see some gaps on whether candidates are equipped with the up-to-date tech skills. The IT skill sets that is being taught is not up to employer's expectation so clients will hire experienced workers from India for example.

We should also prepare our students with career planning. I think most students are not aware of what a career is. If we can introduce that in our tertiary education or high school, that would be very helpful.

RD: So, should SPM graduates still opt for expensive degrees overseas?

LA: There's no one way to success. A degree is a basic or foolproof showcase to the ones who are reviewing your resume that, at least you are someone that can takeup the academic challenge. A degree demonstrates that you have the discipline to work at a task to completion.

But in reality, if you do not need a professional qualification for the job, you do not need to pursue a degree to have a successful career. Be sure of what you want to do in your career for the next 5 to 10 years.

If you don't have the relevant degree, show relevant working experience to prove that you're qualified for the job. While AI CV tools exist that search for relevant degrees in your CV, they are not the norm right now and working experience is still more important.

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