The apprentice schemes are part of the vocational training given to students attending courses at the Malta Centre for Arts, Science and Technology (Mcast), among others. There were 311 graduates, 159 of whom had attended the Extended Skills Training Scheme while 152 had attended the Technician Apprenticeship Scheme, with 37 of the total graduates being female.

Students attended the work place they were assigned to for a number of days each week, a phase that served as their hands-on training.

The ETC and the employer enter into an apprenticeship contract for each student so the obligations are clear to all parties and the objectives are implemented over the length of the apprenticeship.

Education, Youth and Employment Minister Louis Galea gave a short speech for the occasion. He anticipated an overhaul of the apprentice system, saying that it had served its purpose well for over 50 years but that now it was time to revise the system in a way that reflected the changes that had occurred in the educative and industrial sectors.

The revision was one of the proposals in the employment national action plan, he said, and will be discussed both in the Malta Council for Economic and Social Development and in Parliament.

“Apprenticeship provides a link between technical knowledge and the practical education they receive in the work place,” Dr Galea said. He encouraged more cooperation between the industrial and educational sectors, giving Mcast as a model for such cooperation.

Concluding, Dr Galea gave his best wishes to the graduates, with a special mentioned those who will be setting up their own business. He said that although the challenges they faced were bigger, the potential success and benefits they could reap were even higher.