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Education and industry linkages and partnerships for youth success

Tue, April 16, 1:30 to 3:00pm, Hyatt Regency, Floor: Street (Level 0), Regency A

Group Submission Type: Formal Panel Session

Proposal

Critical to workforce development, collaboration between educational institutions and industry has the potential to strengthen youth skills and employability, enhance academic curriculum and instructional strategies, and promote institutional advancement. Research indicates that career development learning designed in partnership with industry has positive impacts on youth skills and employability (Smith, et. al 2009). As workplaces and jobs adapt due to the fast pace of change in society, the connections between educational institutions and industries are critical for preparing young people for the future of work.

This panel draws from current international best practices in university-industry collaboration, and highlights concrete examples from different geographic regions, from the Middle East and North Africa, to Sub-Saharan Africa and the United States. It presents learning on sustainable and adaptable methods of meaningful engagement between industry with universities and vocational institutions for positive youth outcomes, including soft skills development, job search skills, as well as career planning. As universities prepare their young people for the workforce and employers seek well-qualified youth for jobs, leveraging spaces like university career centers for links between young people, education institutions, and industry allows for strong relationships and opportunity creation that involves the key stakeholders with a stake in addressing youth employment issues.

University-industry collaboration is not only essential for youth outcomes, but also beneficial for employers. As private sector companies engage with universities through career centers, they connect directly with youth, who may be their potential interns or future employees. This link allows for youth to gain knowledge of companies in the workforce as well as gain access to professionals that may not have otherwise been possible. For employers, the direct access can be critical for identifying the best candidates for internships and/or entry-level jobs.
In addition to positive outcomes for youth and employers, university-industry collaboration can enable higher education institutions in building their capacity to engage with industry in the long-term. For the links between universities and industry to be sustainable, universities must be able to collaborate with them over time. The support that these institutions receive through the models in this panel help build their knowledge and skills and provides tools that are adopted into practice. With this, the institutions themselves are able to strengthen relationships with industry and be informed by the needs, shifts, and priorities that affect youth access to employment.

The objective of the panel is to share different models and strategies of university-industry collaboration and their impact on youth employability and role in contributing to youth success, and long-term economic development within communities. Panelists will discuss how collaborative university-industry engagement builds the capacity of higher education institutions to sustain innovative services offered. The panel brings perspectives from organizations supporting university career centers in preparing youth for the workforce, as well as private sector experience on collaboration with universities.

The first panelist, Stanley Currier will discuss the University Design Day Challenge in Iraq, a learning experience at educational institutes that equips students with essential skills (teamwork, problem solving, and critical thinking) needed in the workplace and improves the relevance of higher education to local industry through links between students, faculty, industry and career centers. The second panelist, Jeffrey Matu, will share the role of partnerships between university career centers in Morocco and the private sector contributed to connecting almost 30,000 youth to diverse skills-building and career development opportunities, while providing virtual opportunities for those unable to access physical centers to benefit from the workforce preparation provided online - a forward-looking approach, essential for the future of work. The third panelist, Nina Oduro, will provide insights on the framework used in the Youth-led Labour Market Assessment in Uganda that engaged a university career center in facilitating youth-led research which enabled youth (both in-school and out of school) linkages with trade sector companies. The fourth panelist, Godwell Kosha, will share how Microsoft engages with universities in the United States including collaborating with career centers to share skills needed for career as well as for recruitment of young professionals.

The panel chair, Stanley Currier from IREX, will provide a brief introduction to the panel, connecting the panel to the conference theme of Education for Sustainability. The discussant, Nancy Taggart from USAID, will provide summary remarks drawing from USAID-led research on lessons learned from career center support in MENA and facilitate a question-and-answer discussion with attendees.

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