Minister: University-Industry Collaboration Crucial to Address Skills Mismatch

Manpower Minister Yassierli has emphasised the importance of closer collaboration between universities and industry to address the mismatch between graduate competencies and the needs of the labour market. According to data from the Ministry of Manpower, around 33.5 percent of university graduates in Indonesia are working in fields unrelated to their studies. “There is a mismatch that is our shared responsibility. Universities produce graduates, but they often do not connect with industry needs. This is why campuses must always be close to industry,” Minister Yassierli said in a statement in Jakarta on Thursday. He said collaboration between universities and industry must be accompanied by a transformation of higher education to produce graduates who are better prepared to enter the workforce. In addition, he said universities also need to equip students with communication, collaboration, empathy, and critical thinking skills that cannot be replaced by artificial intelligence. “Students are also encouraged to have a combination of several specific competencies supported by one general competency, known as M-Shaped, so they are more adaptive in facing developments in the labour market compared to relying on just one specialisation,” Yassierli said. As a form of support for this effort, the Ministry of Manpower continues to expand the National Internship Programme, MagangHub.