KUALA LANGAT: Technical and vocational education and training (TVET) is open to all regardless of academic qualifications, says Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

The Deputy Prime Minister said possessing 3M skills (reading, writing and counting) was sufficient if intending to enrol for TVET courses.

Those with excellent academic results, Ahmad Zahid said, can also enrol for TVET courses.

“There were 11,713 students who obtained straight As in the recent Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) results and they can enroll in TVET too.

“They can choose to enroll at the entry level or even through Giatmara, polytechnic institutes and more.

“The opportunities are vast with many flexible study options offered,” he told a press conference at the Kuala Langat Industrial Training Institute here on Friday (June 7).

Ahmad Zahid, who is the National TVET Council chairman, was also hopeful that at least 40% of the recent SPM batch will enroll in the July TVET intake.

“The courses offered are aligned with the manpower needs of both international and domestic companies.

“Their employment criteria is also towards skilled workers or those with TVET qualifications,” he said.

On the roughly 10,000 Form Five students who did not sit for their SPM examinations last year, Ahmad Zahid said they could enrol for TVET courses as long as they had the 3M skills.

“The same goes for ehailing and phailing workers. We also offer upskilling and reskilling programmes for them,” he said.

Ahmad Zahid said it was only right for Malaysia to follow in the footsteps of developed countries such as Japan where TVET was the first choice for school leavers.

“The Education Ministry here has also began offering TVET training through vocational and technical colleges for those who pass their Form 3 education.

“The students will also have to go through a written and oral test to successfully enrol,” he said.

He said applications to enrol in TVET institutes can be done online at upu_tvet website.

“We will ensure all applications will have a placement,” he said.

Earlier, the Deputy Prime Minister had a walkabout along the various booths set up in conjunction with National TVET Day celebrations.

The two-day celebration which began on June 7 and ends tomorrow (June 8), features more than 4,000 TVET courses offered through 1,345 TVET institutions from the public and private sector.

Some 5,000 job vacancies are also up for grabs, with 3,000 offered on site at the fair.