Press Releases

Kuala Lumpur: Malaysia Career & Training Fair 2008, Malaysia's largest job fair, will offer a wide variety of jobs to fresh graduates and working professionals. The Fair, an annual event organised by AIC Exhibitions Sdn Bhd and JobStreet.com, will be held from 4 to 6 April 2008 at Mid Valley Exhibition Centre here.

Participating employers include AIA, Sime Darby, MISC, SP Setia, Lenovo, Satyam, Petronas, Astro, Resort World Bhd, Intel, Samsung and Philip Morris. In total, 128 companies will be offering jobs in all states of Malaysia as well as overseas postings.

"Response from employers has been overwhelming. This reflects the confidence of multinational companies and employers in the nation's economy. Compared to last year, MCTF2008 has grown by 32%, and now occupy 45,000 square feet of exhibit space," says William Ng, managing director of AIC Exhibitions and the Fair's chairman.

Simon Si, vice president of marketing of JobStreet.com, says, "JobStreet.com is excited to be working with AIC again to organize the largest job fair in Malaysia. Exhibitors remembered the success of last year where over 80,000 visitors came to the Malaysia Career & Training Fair 2007. It is the reason why all the booths were sold out within one month of launching the fair."

Among the jobs on offer are in accounting & finance, sales & marketing, IT, telecommunications, biotechnology, research and development, administration and design, and covers a wide range of industry.

Ng adds, "Jobseekers, from fresh graduates to senior managers, will be spoilt with choice with so many multinational and public-listed companies offering jobs at one place."

Skills Mismatched
"Contrary to popular belief, there're plenty of jobs in Malaysia. But employers are demanding better qualified candidates - making it very difficult for fresh graduates to find work. It is important therefore that our education system take into consideration evolving industry needs and prepare students to meet these needs," says Ng.

Ng, who is also the President of Young Professionals Association of Malaysia, said, "A recent survey conducted by the Association among 600 young professionals between 22 and 30 revealed that the biggest challenge facing young professionals in securing a job is their inability to converse fluently in English and/or Bahasa Malaysia. Among Malay graduates, English seem to be a problem, and among Chinese graduates Bahasa Malaysia prove problematic."

He added that the other problems encountered are lack of experience, difficulty in finding a job that matches their primary field of study and lack of jobs in their hometowns.

Visitors to Malaysia Career & Training Fair 2008 will be able to attend a whopping 46 seminar sessions co-organised by the Young Professionals Association of Malaysia - which will introduce jobseekers to employers' expectations and prepare them for their job interviews.

For more information, visit www.lifelonglearning.org.my.