Top Apprentices Recognised in VTC Outstanding Apprentice Award Presentation Ceremony

The Vocational Training Council (VTC) held the 2021 Outstanding Apprentice Award Presentation Ceremony on Wednesday (6 July) to recognise the excellent performance of 14 apprentices from different technical specialisms including lifts and escalators, construction engineering, electrical engineering and railway transportation, encouraging them to embrace continuous learning and make best use of their professional knowledge and skills to contribute to community betterment.
 
Chairman of the VTC Apprenticeship Training Board, Mr Edmond LAI Wing-kok, noted in his opening remarks that “This year marks the 45th anniversary of the VTC Apprenticeship Training Scheme. Through the Scheme, many professional talents have been groomed to serve the community on the strength of their knowledge and expertise. Over the years, they have moved up the professional ladder and won industry recognition.” Mr Lai also said that the VTC Earn & Learn Scheme has been well supported by industry since its launch in 2014, with more than 7,000 trainees from over 500 companies joining the programme. Going forward, the VTC Earn & Learn Scheme will be extended to cover more new industries and in-demand professions such as cybersecurity, artificial intelligence and mobile app development.
 
Nominated by employers, all the awarded outstanding apprentices made their way to success after rounds of interviews. Amongst the list of awardees is LEE King, a trainee of the VTC Earn & Learn Scheme. Now serving in the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department as Technician Trainee II, King recalled his training experience at hospitals, in which he was responsible for the maintenance of electrical and mechanical facilities to ensure smooth operation of the hospital and its delivering of quality public services. King said, “Ensuring proper functioning of the medical systems and equipment is very important and I felt proud to be able to help with maintaining and replacing the electrical and mechanical installations in the hospital. It also gave me a great sense of job satisfaction to assist the crew in ensuring a stable power supply in the hospital under the guidance of the mentor.” In addition, King was once confronted with a mechanical failure during a regular inspection in the Hong Kong Heritage Museum. With the technical knowledge gained from classroom and experiences learnt from his senior colleagues, he managed to resolve the problem and gain recognition from his mentor and supervisor. King is currently pursuing the part-time evening Higher Diploma in Electrical Engineering programme at VTC, hoping to enhance his professional knowledge and play his part to contribute to society.
 
Also being awarded is LAU Ka-yan, a lady in the traditionally male-heavy electrical industry. Ka-yan sees the Apprenticeship Training Scheme as a comprehensive platform which gives apprentices easy access to the industry. She says, “As a liberal arts graduate, I have to spend extra efforts on engineering mathematics. The Scheme covers a mix of theoretical knowledge and practical training. These, together with the guidance of veteran mentors, have enabled me to grasp the technical skills swiftly.” Currently an Electrical Engineering Technician Apprentice with Oriental Construction Engineering Company, Ka-yan is now engaged in a mega-scale housing development project in Tuen Mun, where she devotes herself to contributing to the city’s infrastructure development. In the hope of developing herself into a well-rounded electrical professional, Ka-yan plans to pursue a degree upon completing the Higher Diploma in Electrical Engineering programme.
 
This year, a total of 160 registered apprentices were nominated by employers for the Outstanding Apprentice Award Scheme, of whom the judging panel selected 11 to receive the Outstanding Apprentice Award and three to receive the Sir Edward Youde Memorial Outstanding Apprentice Awards.

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 13 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 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

Media Enquiries: 2836 1279 / 2836 1439

Annex: List of 2021 Outstanding Apprentices