By DayakDaily Team
KUCHING, Sept 30: The Sarawak Centre of Performance Excellence (SCOPE) is targeting 1,000 Sarawakian graduates for the sixth cohort of its Graduate Enhancement Training Sarawak Work Readiness Programme (GETS-WRP), which begins in October.
SCOPE chief executive officer Joseph Lim said applications for the programme are open continuously, with no fixed closing date, and are open to graduates from both public and private higher education institutions.
He said eligible applicants must be Sarawakians who have completed a bachelor’s degree with a minimum cumulative grade point average (CGPA) of 2.8 and are aged 30 or below.
“Participants must be first-time GETS-WRP participants and must not have previously taken part in the programme,” he said in a special interview with the Sarawak Public Communications Unit (Ukas) at SCOPE Sarawak on Tuesday (Sept 29).
Lim said GETS-WRP is structured in two phases, comprising three months of career enhancement training followed by nine months of industry placement.
The initial three-month training covers practical employability skills, including emotional intelligence, resume and CV preparation, communication with employers and interview preparation.
He said the training modules are regularly reviewed based on industry feedback to help bridge the gap between academic qualifications and workplace requirements.
“After completing the three-month training, graduates will go through interviews with employers before being placed with private companies or government agencies.
“The process is designed to simulate the experience of looking for a job, giving graduates an opportunity to understand and navigate the recruitment process,” he said.
Lim said SCOPE currently has more than 80 strategic partners across the private and public sectors, with the network continuing to expand to create more placement opportunities for GETS-WRP participants.
He said graduates could also potentially secure permanent or contract positions with their host organisations if suitable vacancies become available during the nine-month placement period.
On employment outcomes, Lim said the January and February 2025 cohorts recorded an employment rate of 61 per cent.
SCOPE, he said, is targeting an employment rate of between 70 and 80 per cent in future cohorts.
He added that industry feedback plays an important role in keeping the programme relevant, with training modules focusing on skills such as communication, emotional intelligence, teamwork, presentation and writing.
Lim also urged graduates to remain open-minded when considering their first job, stressing that an initial position could provide valuable experience and skills that would help them progress to better career opportunities.
“It is not necessarily the case that graduates will secure jobs in the same field as their studies. Their first job can serve as a stepping stone to build experience and skills before moving on to better career prospects,” he said.
He encouraged interested graduates to obtain further information and apply through SCOPE’s website and social media platforms, as well as through its collaborations with universities, the Sarawakku Sayang programme and PERKESO’s MYFutureJobs platform.
Lim also thanked UKAS for its continued support in promoting GETS-WRP among Sarawakian graduates and encouraging more young people to take advantage of the opportunities offered through the programme. — DayakDaily
