Basseterre, St. Kitts, August 20, 2014 (SKNIS): The Recognising Everyone’s Ability to Climb Higher (REACH) series of meetings were initiated yesterday (August 19) for persons leaving school who are seeking employment.
This aspect of the program dubbed TOPS (Training for Optimal Performance of School-leavers) is designed to advance the vocational and professional skills of school-leavers in preparation for employment. It is expected to enhance human resource capacity to meet local, regional and international labour market needs.
TOPS is divided into two sections, Vocational and Professional.
The vocational aspect facilitates access to training in vocational skills leading to Caribbean Vocational Qualification (CVQ) certification. Students, who are accepted by the Advanced Vocational Education Centre (AVEC) to pursue full-time studies, leading to CVQ certification, will receive an annual grant of EC $2000.
The Professional tier of TOPs is targeted at school-leavers who are committed to advancing their professional and personal development. In collaboration with the program facilitators, SIDF has developed a three-month Professional Training Programme that will provide stipends to school-leavers who are enrolled.
Persons participating in the three-month programme will receive advanced level Microsoft Office training leading to Microsoft Office Certification. They will also pursue University of the West Indies (UWI) certified training courses in Life and Work Skills and participate in workshops. In addition to this, they will receive a stipend of EC $1,400 per month during the three month training period.
Another component of the REACH programme is ESSAI (Educational Scholarships for Students in Advanced Institution). This is SIDF’s two year scholarship programme for students pursuing advanced studies at the CFBC or Nevis Sixth Form College.
An allowance of EC $2,500 will be given to each student who has been accepted full-time at these institutions in the Division of Arts, Sciences and General Studies or the Division of Technical and Vocational Education and Management Studies (TVEMS) in the 2014- 2015 academic year.
In addition, the student will receive an annual allowance of EC $250 for each subject pass above five up to eight CXC, CSEC or GCE subjects. An additional allowance of EC $100 will be given for each subject pass above eight CXC, CSEC or GCE subjects.
Students who have successfully completed studies in any two of the following science courses (biology, chemistry, physics and mathematics) will receive a special incentive allowance of EC$1000 at the end of each academic year. Similarly, a special allowance of EC $1000 will be awarded at the end of each academic year to students who have successfully completed studies in French and Spanish.
To find out if you are eligible for these opportunities, visit www.sknsidf.
org.
The deadline for receiving applications is September 10, 2014.