ENG-1985 — Page 145

EDUCATION

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academic year were about 6 000 full-time, 13 400 part-time day, and 26 200 part-time evening students. In September, the full-time teaching establishment of the technical institutes was about 510 with about 420 supporting staff.

The annual employment survey of full-time course graduates again showed that they had little difficulty in finding employment in their respective disciplines after completion of their studies.

A computer centre at the Lee Wai Lee Technical Institute, with terminals linking all five institutes, enables the study of computer applications to be included in most courses. Computer facilities in each technical institute were expanded by the enhancement of the existing minicomputers and the purchase of 100 microcomputers.

An expansion programme is being undertaken to meet the increasing demand for courses. A five-storey annex to the Haking Wong Technical Institute was completed in August and construction work on two new technical institutes at Tuen Mun and Sha Tin was started in April. These two projects are due for completion in September 1986. Another technical institute is being planned at Chai Wan for 1987.

Industrial Training

Construction of the Vocational Training Council's nine-storey Kowloon Bay Training Centre Complex was completed in December 1984 and the 10-storey Kwai Chung Training Centre Complex in July. The complex at Kowloon Bay houses five training centres for the electronics, hotel, machine shop and metal working, plastics, and printing industries. The complex at Kwai Chung also has six training centres for the automobile, electrical, electronics, gas, machine shop and metal working (including welding), and textiles industries.

These training centres have the capacity to provide basic off-the-job training for about 9 000 trainees a year, ranging from operative to technologist level.

The council is in the process of setting up a precision tooling training centre and an insurance training centre. A Committee on Precision Tooling was established in December to oversee the establishment and the work of the precision tooling training centre.

The Seamen's Training Temporary Centre at Little Sai Wan started operation in February 1984. It provides 30-day training programmes to Hong Kong seamen to enable them to obtain the necessary certificates required under the International Maritime Organisation's Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers 1978. The centre can train 1 920 seamen a year. A permanent seamen's training centre at Tai Lam Chung is being planned.

The Engineering Graduate Training Scheme was launched by the Vocational Training Council in February 1983 to provide 18-months' practical training to enable engineering graduates to become qualified professional engineers. In 1985, 67 firms with 364 trainee- engineers participated in the scheme.

The Management Development Centre of Hong Kong started operation in October 1984 with the main purpose of improving management in Hong Kong, and ensuring that it is capable of meeting changing needs, both in the short and the long term. The centre has four principal functions, covering research, development, co-ordination, and promotion.

Apart from industrial apprenticeship schemes, commercial traineeship schemes were also introduced in the accountancy and insurance sectors. The Training Course Subsidy Scheme operated by the Vocational Training Council was popular with the journalism sector and the wholesale/retail and import/export trades.