Eighty percent of the applicants who wrote the entrance test last year to determine their eligibility to attend the Guyana Industrial Training Centre (GITC) did not qualify for any trade programmes offered at the institution. A total of 520 persons had applied.This disclosure was made when the Administrator’s Report was presented by Mr Dexter Cornette at the institution’s 43rd graduation ceremony last week Thursday.The applicants, he said, were however the core group from which trainees were selected for the various training programmes. “Applicants who fell a fraction short of the required scores, were selected for training but their performance was carefully monitored,Jerseys NFL China,” Cornette said.A section of the graduation class A total of 163 students made up the recent graduation batch of the institution which offers year-long courses in Carpentry, Electrical Installation, Automotive Mechanic and Maintenance, Masonry, Plumbing and Welding, Fitting and Machining and Information Technology. Remedial English was introduced at GITC in the early 1990s to assist with the improvement of the cognitive skills of the trainees,Cheap Jerseys Supply, Cornette disclosed.He explained that the 2009 cycle commenced on January 5 last, with 246 trainees of whom 156 attended fulltime classes,Cheap Sports Jerseys, while 90 were enrolled for part-time courses. Among the fulltime intake, Cornette revealed, were nine trainees who were sponsored by the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs’ Hinterland and Welfare Division.He added that seven female trainees had sought to venture into the field of Electrical Installation,Wholesale China Jerseys, Plumbing and Automotive Mechanic.However,? 37 registered trainees opted to prematurely drop out of the institution,Cheap Jerseys Free Shipping, effectively affecting the Carpentry and Fitting and Machining part-time programmes. “The reasons cited for the high percentage of dropouts were migration of trainees and the fact that some trainees had difficulties in obtaining time off to attend classes,” Cornette underscored.Nonetheless, 189 trainees completed their respective training courses with 163 being successful and 18 failing to achieve an acceptable pass rate.He also pointed out in his report that since GITC has over the years been able to maintain a cordial relation with industrial organisations, support has been forthcoming in the area of ‘hands on’ training for trainees.“These organisations have been supportive by accepting trainees for on the job training. This exposure has been invaluable and enables our trainees to gain added knowledge, practical experience and to learn the culture of the industries,” Cornette added.He disclosed that during the period July 13 to August 29 last, 139 trainees were placed in industrial settings including workshops and reputable organisations in Georgetown and on the East and West Banks of Demerara.Ninety-five percent of the trainees completed attachment stints at the various sites with the majority of them performing satisfactorily.Major General Ret’d, Norman McLean, in his charge to the students, emphasised the importance of ‘work’. He said that whether an individual is poor or even rich he or she should seek to work without reservation.According to McLean,Wholesale Authentic Jerseys, “work is the greatest material remedy available and work will cure both mental and physical afflictions.”At the graduation ceremony a display of technical work produced by the graduands was exhibited. Deputy Chief Education Officer (Technical), Mr Suresh Baijnauth congratulated the graduands for the quality of work produced and cautioned them not to see their graduation as the end but rather the beginning of a journey that could take them higher heights.He further encouraged then to progress until they become engineers within their respective fields.