Education and unemployment

Although we have few fields that still need qualified people, we have many unemployed bachelor degree holders for a good number of white-collar posts.

However, there are many vacancies for workers who do not require a degree, the vast majority of whom are occupied by foreign workers.

The first step to tackle the unemployment problem is to increase university fees for the “exhausted” jobs for 90 per cent of the students. 

Only the top students should pay the standard fee. The extra money should go to a special trust for combating unemployment.

The next step should be to make students do full-time mandatory community service for a month in order to graduate.

This community service (a job a foreign worker does in order to make money and spend abroad) must take place during or before the first year of study for male students.

Students, who need to work and study may repeat the “community service” as many times as they wish, even part-time. Not only will they be paid for this time (from the trust fund and the recipient of the service) but it will also be added to their CV as an extracurricular activity.

I insist to call it “community service” even when it is paid for, not only because it helps keep salaries inside the country, but also because it will contribute to changing the culture of shame concerning certain jobs.

Those who do community service more than once should receive priority over other applicants if they seek a governmental job after graduation.

The more hours they accumulate, the higher their chances to get an official post. 

When checking one’s ranking on the official web site for job vacancies, the name as well as the number of hours served as community service must be shown, to reflect the importance of community service. 

Nizar Sawalha,
Amman