Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1105612
maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 17 APRIL 2019 MATTHEW VELLA MALTESE graduates are the most likely to be in employ- ment, according to the Euro- pean Commission's data. According to education and training specialists the- k n o w l e d g e a c a d e m y . c o m , who delved into the data to find out the current employ- ment rate of recent graduates, Malta currently has the high- est employment rate of re- cent graduates in Europe – at 94.5% – followed by Germany (90.9%) and the Netherlands (90.4%.) The 2018 edition of the re- port, Education and Train- ing Monitor by the European Commission, shows Member States have made progress in meeting targets, such as the want to "reach the employ- ment rate of recent graduates to 82%" by 2020 Slightly behind these three countries, but with impressive rates, are the Czech Republic (89.9%), Austria (89.4%), Lux- embourg (88.5%) and Sweden with 88.3%. In the UK, recent graduates have an employment rate of 86.6% – over 4% higher than the European average member states are striving for. Thereafter, the employment rate of recent graduates across Europe begins to decline ever slightly. In Latvia, we reach a rate of 78.0%, while Bulgaria (77.7%), Finland (77.0%) and Romania (76.0%) follow. Alternately, the three coun- tries with the lowest employ- ment rate of recent gradu- ates are, Croatia (65.9%), Italy (55.2%) and Greece – with an employment rate of just 52.0%. Joseph Scott, a spokesper- son for theknowledgeacad- emy.com said almost half the countries included in the ta- ble meet the grade, whilst a few even exceed it. "We're not worlds away from achieving the average employment rate Member States are striving for…. It is therefore encour- aging for countries with lower rates, such as Greece, Italy and Croatia, who will hopeful- ly utilise the comparable data to improve circumstances for their graduates. After all, in- vesting in education across Europe will benefit us all. If we produce graduates who can make a success of their life, we can create a sustain- able workforce of confident and competitive grads ready to overcome anything." Maltese graduates have the highest employment rate in Europe Malta exceeds the projected EU target of 82% graduate employment At 94.5%, Malta currently has the highest employment rate of recent graduates in Europe