MCAST Gozo Centre - four years down the line

MCAST has evolved into a success story in Malta as well as in Gozo. The college opened its doors in Gozo in October 2002 with 63 students. Four years down the line, the MCAST Gozo Centre has expanded into two annexes with a combined student population of almost 200 (day) students.

The centre offers a selection of 13 courses from the different college institutes, covering a broad spectrum of vocational disciplines. Business and Commerce and ICT courses are held at the Xaghra annexe while Engineering (Electrical and Electronics, Mechanical and Construction), Community Services (Care) and Agribusiness courses are delivered at the Xewkija annexe.

MCAST has changed the concept of Vocational Education and Training (VET) completely. A common wrong perception is that MCAST is there merely for students who have not been so successful in secondary school. However, MCAST courses offer Gozitan school-leavers equally valid alternatives in VET to the traditional academic study route.

Those who are effectively offering the best promotion and publicity for MCAST courses are the students themselves through their successes at college and in subsequent employment. The Gozo centre does not merely aim to train students in a particular vocational discipline but also to educate them in holistic manner in order to develop them into responsible and worthy citizens.

The college features a multi-level entry system whereby students can enrol at various levels, depending on their qualifications. Students who complete their secondary education without attaining formal qualifications - SEC/O-levels - can start from the so-called foundation (level 1) courses and upon successful completion progress to higher levels. Such courses are intended for students with little or no formal qualifications at all, focusing mainly on the development of practical skills and helping the students in basic skills whenever needed.

Students with higher qualifications can enrol at higher levels ... Direct enrolment into Level 2 courses normally requires two SEC/O-level passes, enrolment into Level 3 requires four SEC/O-level passes, and so on. For the exact entry requirements for specific courses, prospective applicants are recommended to refer to the MCAST prospectus that is also available online on the college Web page (www.mcast.edu.mt). Through this framework, MCAST is also gaining popularity among well qualified students who are choosing to follow a vocational course (usually Level 3 or 4 diploma courses) after completing MATSEC/A-level courses. In this way, MCAST offers VET opportunities to students of different abilities - from those with few or no formal qualifications to the academically minded.

In specific vocational areas (e.g. ICT), a student who starts from foundation level can have the opportunity to progress all the way up to a degree-level programme. Others who are not so academically minded can undergo alternative craft-level courses in specific trades leading to certification that is recognised both locally and abroad.

Recognised certification is of the utmost importance. Everyone needs to understand that today's world leaves no space for the amateur. The days where a trade was passed over from father to son are over. Proper certification (as well as retraining) has become indispensable for anyone to achieve and maintain their employability. The future is indeed very bleak for those who remain unskilled.

Apart from being a post-16 further and higher-education institution, MCAST is also a community college. Under this role, the Gozo Centre services the re-training needs of Gozitan workers through evening part-time courses. One must also mention the EU-funded courses that have been held at the Gozo Centre. These include:

• an ESF 14 course aimed at giving employability skills to women wishing to return to the workforce;

• an ESF 16 course in caring for the elderly;

• an ESF 11 course in bee-keeping and apiculture.

Courses (funded from EU pre-accession funds) in Good Agricultural Practice (GAP) and Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) programmes targeting Gozitan Agricultural Government officers and Farmers/Owners/Agricultural Managers. (This course was offered in conjunction with the Danish Agricultural Advisory Service).

The college believes firmly that there is room for further expansion in Gozo. Infrastructural works are currently underway at the Xewkija annex. These involve the erection of new Electrical Installation, Welding and Fabrication workshops and related facilities. Separate contracts for the provision of state-of-the-art equipment for these workshops have already been awarded.

This project will be co-financed from the current ERDF budget allocation and will be completed by the end of 2006. Through the MCAST Projects Office, the Gozo Centre management has already submitted specific proposals in order to realise additional projects for the Gozo centre from the ERDF 2007-2013 budget allocation. In parallel with this, the Gozo Centre has been included in the master-development plan for the college for the coming 15-20 years.

MCAST is also committed to increase its training provision for Gozitans in Gozo, through the use of modern technology. A video-conferencing system linking the Gozo Centre with the MCAST main campus will be operational in early October to coincide with the start of the next teacher training course that will be held by the MCAST Vocational Teacher Training Unit (VTTU). Gozitan lecturing staff undertaking this pedagogy course will be the first to benefit from this technology at MCAST. MCAST intends to fully exploit this technology to maximise training opportunities at higher levels at Gozo.

Above all, in the coming years, the MCAST Gozo Centre must be a key player in Gozo in addressing the deficiencies and meeting targets as set out in the Lisbon Objectives.

Mr Grech is manager of the MCAST Gozo Centre