Acquiring professional skills is an opportunity for career advancement and the development of communication and economic channels for sharing experiences and information. In many ways, educational processes can be integrated into other fields, so it is essential to pay proper attention to the professional skills employees acquire. In addition, there is the problem of staff shortages because of the growing market for competitively capable people. The solution to this shortage may be creating internship programs, where employees get hands-on experience in applying new skills and reinforcing old ones. Currently, South Africa is also beginning to see a shortage of human resources, affecting all production, trade and economic processes in the country. This problem can be seen by evaluating SETA – sectoral education programs that reinforce skills. In particular, this paper aims to analyze a specific program that has reached more than 3,000 people, but the implementation has not been entirely successful.
Orientation / Conceptual Framework
An internship is gaining work experience or upgrading skills in a speciality and working in that area for a specified period. Traineeship involves the employee’s training in the course of work and is one of the forms of professional development. By improving employees’ skills, the organization can enhance the overall efficiency of human resources and introduce innovative labour organization methods and customer service (Ebrahim and Pirttilä, 2019). Accordingly, it improves the results of the enterprise’s economic activity. Now there are various professional development methods in the enterprise, so employers should pay attention to such opportunities.
Internships can be defined differently depending on the region. In many ways, young people in South Africa are mainly focused on maintaining and developing their junior college skills (Devi and Kehinde, 2020). For example, immediately after graduation, students enter programs below their qualifications. Skills that can be acquired through educational strategies are not in sight, and as a result, the chance for better life prospects is diminished. Learning is concentrated at lower levels, so youth unemployment is increasing. The exclusion of programs from one’s field of vision leads to less experience in the application of professional skills, due to which it takes a long time for students to find a job to their liking (Mason-Williams et al., 2020). Thanks to the Sector Education and Training Authorities (SETA) activities, the number of apprenticeships in various skill levels and topics is increasing. Moreover, the participation of students leads to a rapid transition from education to work and makes it easier to integrate into the workplace.
The qualification is obtained through a program of study, which leads to the registration of the qualification with the National Qualifications Framework. This means that the South African Qualifications Framework focuses on training programs through which students get a job and gain and develop a skill over some time (Mabeda, 2019). This skill is what allows them to gain a foothold in the workplace. By enhancing employees’ skills, the organization can improve the overall efficiency of its workforce, introduce innovative work organization and customer service methods, and consequently improve the company’s economic performance (MICT SETA Annual report, 2021). SETA is responsible for creating training internships that focus specifically on developing an applied skill. Consequently, SETA is the main body for integrating young people into the working sector, which has become an opportunity to solve the problem of lack of education.
Shortage of education is a problem that leads to a shortage of human resources. The shortage of qualified personnel is observed in the technological sector, computer science, medicine, metallurgy, and the production of consumer goods (Devi and Kehinde, 2020). The shortage of skilled personnel leads to increased labor costs, which provokes outstripping inflation rates in the industries and regions where this deficit is most pronounced (MICT SETA Sector skills plan, 2019). Companies in every sector are looking for employees who possess a wide range of skills. These qualities include assembling and managing teams, working with project documentation, understanding what is going on in each enterprise area, and proposing solutions that will help achieve the desired result.
To solve the problem of the shortage of qualified personnel, South Africa has long sought ways to improve the education of the population. In 1999, the Skills Development Fundraising Act No. 9 was initiated. The Act provided for collecting a certain amount of money for skill development and sought to address any issues that involved it. The last amendments to the law were made in 2020: the amendments dealt with the possibility of refunding the fee amount (MICT SETA Annual report, 2020). Consequently, the South African government has made the people responsible for improving their education to address the skills shortage.
The government created the National Skills Development Strategy (NSDS), which received criticism during implementation. Despite the criticism, the NSDS has yielded positive results, demonstrating that its training programs are a powerful tool to address skills shortages in the long term (Evaluation of the national skills development strategy, 2019). The official goals of enrolling students in training programs and graduating them were achieved through the work of SETA and the Department of Labor. It is reported that about 65% of those who registered for the program in 2005 completed their goals within a year, according to NSDS II (National skills development plan, 2030, 2019). At the same time, the Council on Higher Education demos that the percentage who successfully complete their postsecondary programs is much lower. In addition, the completion process is more time-consuming.
In 2015, NSDS III was published and identified challenges in the current agenda. Among them was a strategy for the lower segment (Level 1-3), which is not aligned with the current goals of educational programs. The results of NSDS III are expected to increase the rate of employee participation in internships to 80%, but given the focus on the lower segment, this may be not easy (MICT SETA Sector skills plan, 2019). According to training completion rates, the integration of SETA internships results in more employees being engaged. For example, by 2017, 69% of all programs had high certification rates, and the number of internships totalled 58080 (MICT SETA Annual report, 2021). These results show that although NSDS is proven to be effective, the industry education and internship components are a winning strategy for young people in South Africa.
MICT SETA partnered with other SETAs to expand this partnership nationwide and partner with technical and vocational education and training colleges. The ultimate goal was to promote e-learning platforms for students (MER SETA, MICT SETA, ETDP, QCTO & National Skills Fund 2020/21 Annual performance plans, 2020). The length of the MICT SETA was stretched due to the pandemic and the difficulty with economic conditions, but this did not prevent students from completing their studies. The SETA experience shows that most students were employed in their desired jobs after completing the internships and had opportunities to develop their skills (Mokoko, 2022). In addition, the results show that the educational programs offered are relevant to current policies.
In most cases, students are expected to be employed after graduation, and youth unemployment will be reduced by 2022. Since it is less than 10% of the total population, including more than 2,000 students in the workforce will be effective (South Africa’s unemployment rate hits a new record high in Q4 2021, 2022). Consequently, programs such as SETA do impact socio-economic relations within the state.
Problem Statement
The most crucial tendency of education management in current conditions is that educational problems should not only be solved at the level of the educational system itself. Solving these problems becomes a component of the national system (Azizuddin and Hossain, 2020). Education management should be the responsibility of specialized educational ministries and should be a component of effective government programs that cover all areas of public life (Doorwar, Meraj and Hassan, 2019; Evaluation of the national skills development strategy, 2019). Conducting a unified state policy in the educational system is an essential task of education management (Mokoko, 2022).
The topic of the study focuses on the impact of SETA internships on the labor shortage. As of 2021, the unemployment rate reached 34.9%, which stems from the trinity of the general problem of poverty, inequality, and unemployment (South Africa’s unemployment rate hits a new record high in Q4 2021, 2022). Although the Skills Development Act 97 of 1998 has partially improved the situation, it is not enough to reduce unemployment too low levels (MICT SETA Sector skills plan, 2019). Education is a frequent factor in welfare and requires attention. Higher education is not always a guarantee of getting a job, but skills development can solve this problem (Agasisti, Froumin and Platonova, 2022). The development of institutional learning and applied competence can only be provided by a system of training followed by recognition of professional qualifications (Mokoko, 2022). This system applies to all branches and levels of classification and covers all nuances of the intermediate level of learning.
The motivation for this study is to determine the magnitude of the impact of SETA internships on solving the education gap. It relies on quantitative statistical correlations between students who entered the program and the outcomes of their studies. The study’s goal is to look for factors that could potentially exacerbate educational outcomes due to dropout (Doorwar, Meraj and Hassan, 2019). Given that a large proportion of those entering the program is initially unemployed, the question is raised as to whether the internship is in demand given the subsequent dropout rate.
Among the SETA programs launched in 2020 is an internship that aims to gain practical skills in media and communications. The full name of the internship is Media, Information & Communication and Technology (MICT) SETA Learnership, which, due to issues such as COVID and the unstable economic market, is taking longer than planned. It will not close until June 2022, with the number of participating students down by more than a third (The minister of higher education…, 2022). Although aspects such as the epidemiological situation have affected the extension, it is worth noting that this may be due to a lack of perception about the relevance of the skills offered (Mokoko, 2022). At the same time, media communication skills are among the most important, which raises how the program is implemented (MER SETA, MICT SETA, ETDP, QCTO & National Skills Fund 2020/21 Annual performance plans, 2020). The MICT’s collaboration with companies ensures that its students are employed and integrated into the socio-economic environment (MICT SETA Annual report, 2021). With the job market falling due to the pandemic, unemployment rates have increased, and the expected graduation could change that problem.
Problem Statement: Putting internships like MICT SETA Leadership into practice could potentially reduce the observed youth unemployment in South Africa.
Central Theoretical Statements
- Internships play a significant role in reducing the unemployment rate by increasing the educated, able-bodied segment of the population.
- SETA internship opportunities allow young people to gain professional applied skills.
- Participation in internships increases the chances of future employment.
- The higher the educational program level and the corresponding qualification of the person, the higher the probability of more successful employment and higher wages.
- Dropout factors in educational programs can be connected with their irrelevance and unclaimed demand in the labor market.
Research Objectives and Questions
The research objectives focus on identifying factors that contribute to the successful completion of educational programs and internships amid high unemployment rates, including among youth. These include:
- Identifying the legislative frameworks and evaluation models for educational programs and internships in South Africa that have the most significant impact.
- Evaluating the findings of a specific SETA educational program.
Research Questions
- What legislative frameworks support professional applied skills development in South Africa and which are most in-demand?
- What elements underpin training and apprenticeships in South Africa, based on their conceptual and theoretical characteristics?
- Are firms and employers critical factors in implementing training and its outcomes?
Research Methodology
Approach/Method and Design
A qualitative method will be used for this study: it will establish the nature of the relationship between internships and changes in the job market.
Quantitative methods are based on the creation of a single research tactic in which all measurable aspects are addressed. Analysis of information in such studies passes through statistical tools that allow you to classify categories of data and interpret them. Statistical processing establishes correlation – dependent changes between different types of data. Quick results are an advantage of the method, although additional tools are needed to discuss them. The use of quantification will be useful for studies requiring verification of a particular phenomenon, and the results obtained extend to any sample size.
Qualitative research methods focus on examining individuals and understanding and explaining the subjective aspects of their interactions. Qualitative analysis works with data with no structure, or it is not apparent, and their nature is not numbers or any categories. Such analysis must be built on methodologies that often differ from case to case. Its use is particularly relevant within the social and marketing sciences, education, and methodological research because of its criteria for the variability of subjectivity.
The advantages of this research method in the framework of this paper are the focus on a specific topic and its understanding in the context under study. Thus, the qualitative method will focus on the nature of the relationship of the influence of market factors on attrition and assess the effectiveness of the used tactics of SETA internships. At the same time, the disadvantages are the soft focus on statistical data and the analysis of dropout rates.
Population and Sampling
This study will focus on the SETAs and how they execute and implement the Senior Sector Skills Plans. A Sector Skills Plan (SSP) is a comprehensive document that outlines the skills demand and supply in a specific sector, resulting in skill gaps. The sample is non-parametric because it will use a specific program, SETA Media, Information Communication and Technology. Purposive sampling will determine the population to be surveyed – MICT SETA. This is a range of experts and specialists identifying skill gaps in a particular sector. The study population will include students who are graduating from the MICT program and participants who are not directly involved in program development.
Data Collection Tools
The tools used in this study will be unstructured interviews, including probing and face-to-face interviews. The interview questions will be designed to gather information about the skills gap in the sector by discussing the unemployment rate within their industry versus the skills demand in the industry and what is addressed in the Sector Skills Plan. Open and closed-end questions will be asked to allow engagement. The advantage of this tool is its easy follow-up, but the disadvantage is the lack of a concrete structural characterization of the interviews.
Data Analysis Strategy
The study will use thematic analysis, a technique for analyzing, eliciting, and presenting patterns as qualitative data. First, decoding and recording sessions with focus groups will be done after consultation with SETA. For example, common themes will be identified and interpreted with an analysis of similarities and differences. Then a retrospective study of industry plans, monitoring reports, and financial reports (particularly the tax aspect) will be conducted. The results will be grouped into thematic elements.
Limitations and Distinctions
Limitations are related to the subjectivity of the data provided: in particular, a manipulation effect is expected, which may lead to unreliable results. This is due to the psychological and behavioural changes in selecting the candidate for the interview. In addition, there is the factor of personal bias of the researcher, which will affect the interpretation of results. To deal with these potential problems, tactics such as sound judgement and the development of criteria for the acceptability of results should be used.
Ethical Implications
The University of Pretoria’s ethical clearance processes will be undertaken. All information, i.e. transcripts and consent forms, will be kept for ten years, as prescribed, and collected consent forms will be locked. By section 15(3) (e) of the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 (POPI Act), the SETA may process personal information by the clause stated below:
- If the information is used for historical, statistical or research purposes and the responsible party (MICT SETA) ensures that the further processing is carried out solely for such purposes and will not be published in an identifiable form.
According to Creswell (2018), participant confidentiality and anonymity are critical when conducting any research study. Confidentiality will be assured. All documentation about the permission to conduct research at the SETA will be sent in advance to give the SETA enough time to prepare.
Relevance of the Study
Because of critical unemployment, how government and government programs can influence the introduction of skilled youth into the workforce is pertinent. The current need to identify ways to implement this idea is a matter of reflection. Regarding academic relevance, the study will establish a theoretical relationship between unemployment rates and the skilled workforce in which public sector education agencies are involved. The rationale for this relationship will be found through both local experience and global experience to understand the completeness of the problem. In addition, results are expected in data analysis according to the Department of Monitoring and Evaluation (MICT SETA Annual report, 2020). The potential relationship between SETA assessment models and program conditions will clarify the understanding of strategic plans to address unemployment due to understaffing.
The practical relevance of the research will be to create plans or concepts that are then planned to be integrated into the educational environment. For example, plans are to propose ways to issue work permits more quickly to qualified employees. Faster issuance will fill the labor market and gradually reduce unemployment rates. It is expected that the findings will be integrated into the business environment – respectively, the government segment – where policymakers can operate them to fill gaps in the labor market. The identified evaluation models will contribute to a better understanding of how programs such as SETA work in practice and why they should be the focus of attention.
Preliminary Framework of the Research
- Chapter 1 Relevance of internships in the context of the current state of unemployment
- Chapter 2: Theoretical aspect of the relationship of educational programs and internships with public policy.
- Defining the importance of the educational segment in public administration
- Literature review
- Chapter 3: Current state educational programs and legislative features of qualifications
- Chapter 4. data processing according to the SETA evaluation models under study
- Chapter 5. Plan to integrate educational programs and internships to ensure unemployment reduction
Reference List
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Mokoko, P. S. (2022) ‘South Africa’s public higher education institutions, university research outputs, and contribution to national human capital’, Human Resource Development International, 2022.
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