Promoting VPET, Elevating Apprenticeship:
VTC hosts Earn and Learn Day and Outstanding Apprentice Award Presentation

The Vocational Training Council (VTC) held its Earn and Learn Day cum Outstanding Apprentice Award Presentation Ceremony last Friday (24 May). With skill experiences and demonstrations offered by the teachers and students from different disciplines of VTC, a career expo and multiple forums jointly organised with employers, the event attracted students, parents and teachers to participate and learn about the Apprenticeship Training Scheme, helping students with career planning.

Permanent Secretary for Labour and Welfare Alice LAU Yim, who attended the event as Guest of Honour, noted that the Apprenticeship Training Scheme had been launched for nearly 50 years, which had nurtured outstanding professional and technical talents to support various industries. She added the Government would provide additional resources to VTC, by providing Training Allowance of HK$1,000 per month for each eligible registered apprentice for a maximum of 36 months, starting from 1 April 2024 this year for three consecutive years. The Government would also provide an “Upskilling Allowance” with a maximum amount of HK$30,000 for each graduated apprentice for a period of three years starting from employment. She expected that the measures would attract more young people to join the Apprenticeship Training Scheme and continue further studies after graduation to enhance their skills and seize new opportunities, to become rising stars in the industry.

Chairman of the VTC Apprenticeship Training Board MA Ka-chun said that the apprenticeship training was matching the pace of the industry development and emphasizing practical skills. To enhance public understanding of the professional image of apprentices and the clear career pathway, so as to attract more young people and those interested in switching tracks, VTC rebranded apprenticeship training to envisage the professional and practical image as well as to showcase the promising prospects of apprentices to the public through a series of promotional activities.

In the event, 12 participating employers from transportation, engineering and technology, design, logistics and healthcare industries were invited to join the career expo to share information about industry development, apprenticeship training and manpower demand. Four career talks were conducted, featuring speakers from different industries to discuss industry trends and future career developments.

To provide participants with the fun of trying out skills for themselves, Earn and Learn Day this year featured a variety of interactive booths, including "MTR Goal 2", a driving simulator game that allowed players to experience driving conditions of an open section of the East Rail Line, and provide a realistic virtual driving experience. Participants could accelerate or decelerate according to speed requirements, aimed to accurately stop at stations, and follow instructions for boarding and alighting. Visitors who love machinery and automobiles could not miss the opportunity to assemble a model hydrogen car. By manually stirring a device on the model cars, they could generate enough electricity to race them on the track, and thus learn about the principles of water electrolysis, hydrogen power generation and clean new energy, which implemented education through enjoyment.

The Outstanding Apprentice Award Presentation was held concurrently. One of the outstanding apprentices honoured this year was Vanessa NG Chak-lam, a female engineer who is currently working as a Quantity Surveying Technician apprentice at Build King Construction Limited while studying for a Higher Diploma in Building Studies at the Hong Kong Institute of Vocational Education (IVE). Upon completion of her secondary education, Vanessa studied a tertiary programme on Early Childhood Education and then involved herself in different types of work including the food and beverages industry and the beauty industry. However, she still struggled to determine her future development path. The challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic brought further personal setbacks and economic pressure, prompting her to reconsider her career planning. Through recommendations from friends and family, NG realised the engineering industry in Hong Kong offered distinctive professional advantages. She decided to switch tracks and joined the VTC Apprenticeship Training Scheme as a Quantity Surveying Technician apprentice. 

Vanessa was involved in a project for the development of the new AFCD Animal Management and Animal Welfare Building Complex in Kai Tak. Apart from managing project costs and auditing, settling construction materials purchases and formulating contracts, she had to conduct site inspections to assess the actual expenditure. She remarked that when she first entered the industry, she knew nothing about quantity surveying and building plans. Fortunately, with the patient guidance and encouragement from her company mentors and IVE teachers, she was able to start learning the basic knowledge, from computer-aided design software, to understanding building plans and auditing project costs. Now, having been honoured as an outstanding apprentice and given the opportunity to participate in this significant community engineering project, she has turned her confusion around and regained confidence by contributing to society with her expertise. She exemplifies the success of a female with strength and determination, highlighting the increasing presence of women in the engineering industry in recent years, including the quantity surveying profession. The industry is now applying more innovative technologies, such as digital contracts and Computer-Aided Design (CAD), which require meticulousness and keen observational skills. In addition, as engineering projects often rely on seamless teamwork, effective communication skills play an important role to their successful development. This allows women to fully leverage their characteristics and take on significant roles in engineering. After graduating from IVE, NG plans to take up further studies with the Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Surveying at the Technological and Higher Education Institute of Hong Kong (THEi) and become a professional surveyor.

Tehly TSANG Hei-yin, another outstanding apprentice, is currently working as a Cargo & Logistics Officer apprentice at Hong Kong Air Cargo Terminals Limited (Hactl). Inspired by his elder brother who had previously worked at Hactl, Tehly aspired to pursue a career in the air cargo industry. Upon completion of the Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education Examination (HKDSE), he enrolled for the Higher Diploma in Aviation and e-Logistics programme (now renamed Higher Diploma in Aviation and Logistics) and joined the VTC Earn & Learn Scheme. 

He describes the apprentice training at Hactl as comprehensive, covering different aspects such as cargo handling, air transport regulations and safety operations. "Once, I participated in the cargo clearance of imported chemical goods from overseas,” he recalls. “Under the guidance of my supervisor, I learnt about the packaging, classification, and labelling procedures for handling dangerous goods, as well as arranging special transportation to prevent incidents of damage or leakage. We successfully delivered the goods in a proper manner, which gave me a great sense of satisfaction!"  Tehly believes the stereotypical perception of apprentices is outdated. The aviation logistics industry has applied innovative technologies such as cargo tracking to provide customers real-time delivery information and promptly report any abnormalities, which has enhanced work efficiency and service quality.

This year, more than 230 registered apprentices were nominated by employers for the Outstanding Apprentice Award Scheme. The judging panel selected 10 winners, plus another three to receive Sir Edward Youde Memorial Outstanding Apprentice Awards. In March this year, a study tour to Shanghai was organised for the 10 Outstanding Apprentices. There they exchanged ideas with teachers and students from local universities and visited the WorldSkills Museum, where they were able to view a series of skills-related exhibits to understand better the nation’s development and achievements in technology and creativity.

Established in 1982, the Vocational Training Council (VTC) is the largest vocational and professional education and training provider in Hong Kong. The mission of VTC is to provide a valued choice to school leavers and working people to acquire the values, knowledge and skills for lifelong learning and enhanced employability, and also to provide support to industries for their manpower development. VTC has 14 member institutions, namely the Technological and Higher Education Institute of Hong Kong (THEi), the Institute of Professional Education And Knowledge (PEAK), the School for Higher and Professional Education (SHAPE), the Hong Kong Institute of Vocational Education (IVE), the Hong Kong Design Institute (HKDI), the Hong Kong Institute of Information Technology (HKIIT),  the Hotel and Tourism Institute (HTI),  the Chinese Culinary Institute (CCI), the International Culinary Institute (ICI), the Maritime Services Training Institute (MSTI), Youth College, Pro-Act by VTC, the Integrated Vocational Development Centre (IVDC) and the Shine Skills Centre.

Website:  www.vtc.edu.hk

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