Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/949290
49 maltatoday, SUNDAY, 4 MARCH 2018 Information Technology stage in the process, and match potential candidates based on the requirements each employer has listed in their appli- cation form from the vast pool of student resources. Employers will then be provid- ed with a list of students matching their specific requirements for their considera- tion. It is the employers who will conduct the interview process within a stipulated timeframe, ultimately ensuring the selec- tion of the best resource to best fit their needs. Students eligible to participate need to be studying ICT or related subjects. The minimum entry level is for students that have completed their 2nd year 6th Form (and awaiting examination results), as well as those students who have com- pleted their 2nd year Diploma (and await- ing examination results). In both cases, students are requested to obtain written confirmation of this from their respective educational institutions. In addition, students studying at the University of Malta, MCAST, and various private institutions are also eligible, sub- ject to studying ICT or related subjects. Eligibility is mainly granted to those stu- dents studying at the University of Malta, MCAST, Sixth Form and various private institutions which cater for the aforemen- tioned area of study. SPP does not only provide the employer with the opportunity for temporary sum- mer student placements but also with with the chance to evaluate the students' skills and offer them long-term employ- ment in the future. Following the end of the placement, aside from investing in future workforce, the private sector is reimbursed 50% of the students' salary costs. Organisations from the Public service, Public sector and NGOs will be reimbursed 100% of the stu- dents' salary costs. MITA will reimburse a maximum of 330 hours per student and payments are processed by the end of the year. Similar to the previous years of SPP, employers will also have the possibility to put forward their request for pre-allo- cations through spp.mita@gov.mt. This will ensure that if they have spotted, and trained rising talent during a previous placement with their organisation, they can opt to further develop and enhance a student's skills by offering another place- ment. Furthermore, given last year's success- ful placement figures (60% of applicants) this year MITA has set an ambitious tar- get of 400 placements. This will be ob- tainable through the constant support of employer partners from Private Industry, Public Service/ Public Sector and NGOs. This opportunity is not open exclusively to those Businesses which are directly linked to the use of ICT, but also to those who use ICT in the day to day running of their business such as the Education, Tourism, Health and Manufacturing Sec- tors. In view of the above, we encourage all potential employers to embark on this journey with us to invest in our country's future workforce today. With both drivers of SPP in mind, and after having listened to your feedback, we have implemented some changes to the process. Being in a position to offer further placements to as many student applicants as possible, means that our partnered employer applicants must also be satisfied. For this reason, the selection process has been revised with more posi- tive changes added to the process. MITA will be holding a number of infor- mation sessions to explain the new setup. These sessions will be held on the 13th and the 20th of March 2018 at MITA's Data Centre at 09.00. Interested employers should register their attendance via e-mail indicating the preferred date on spp.mita@gov.mt, or by calling the contact numbers below. Still hesitant whether to give your organisation and future workforce a chance? Visit MITA's website www.mita. gov.mt/spp for more information or con- tact Ms Jacquie Cremona Crossey on 2599 2474 or Ms Andrea Mallia on 2599 2514 or Ms Adelaide Grixti on 2599 2015. Student Placement Programme Schembri also stated that these skills and others like them cannot be taught in a classroom environment, but are rather adopted through exposure, implementation of best practices in the working environment and force of habit Students studying at the University of Malta, MCAST, and various private institutions are also eligible, subject to studying ICT or related subjects Given last year's successful placement figures (60% of applicants) this year, MITA has set an ambitious target of 400 placements