Employment Status of Sorsogon State College Castilla Campus Graduates From Year 2013-2017

The study aimed to determine the Personal Profile and employment status of Bachelor of Science in Agriculture, Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Development,


INTRODUCTION
People are the greatest resource and the most effective agents and managers of change.However, unless the people are equipped with essential knowledge, skills and the right attitude, these capabilities can never be full harnessed (Hubilla, 2013).Employability is an indication of high-quality education and training.It encompasses the knowledge, skills and competencies that give a worker the ability to secure, retain and progress in the job and even secure another job when laid off.It enables him to secure opportunities for high-paying jobs at different period of his life (International Labor Organization, 2011).
But with the ASEAN integration conceding a self-governed of labour within the nations, the current knotty competition for jobs had even become knottier.Graduates nowadays find difficulties in seeking jobs related in their field of specialization because of the overpopulated graduates in the labor market.In order to address this issue, the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) initiates the Outcomes Based Education (OBE) to be integrated in the teaching strategies of the faculty in the higher education.It aimed to produce graduates who are competitive in their field of specialization.
These cited concepts aim to address the employability of graduates by developing them to become self-reliant and technically competent agriculturists and for them to focus entrepreneurship leading towards agriculture enterprise and to have entry-level competencies, become productive and generate employment and reduce social problems.Hence, this study was conducted to determine the employability of graduates to serve as basis in proposing policy directions to enhance the curriculum considering that agricultural graduates are much needed to serve as leaders who could boost the economy and serve as the backbone of industrialization.

Objectives/purpose of the Study
Generally, this study determined the employability of graduates of Sorsogon State College Castilla Campus.Specifically, it aimed to: 1. Determine the Personal Profile and employment status of BSA, BSAD, BAT and BSVT graduates from 2013-2017 of SSC Castilla Campus; 2. Determine the performance of the SSC-CC Graduates towards work; 3. Find out the problems met in line with their jobs; and 4. Recommend measures to address the problems of SSC graduates towards employment.

THEORETICAL REVIEW
There is now a greater pool of university graduates; nevertheless, many lack the appropriate skills for effective absorption into the labor market.As a result, many countries with limited resources are battling to meet the needs of a larger student body at publicly supported institutions of higher education without lowering the quality of their educational programs (The World Bank, 2017).Countries like China, India, and Brazil are among those that have recently undergone significant changes to their higher education institutions in an effort to expand access and improve quality.Yet development has been patchy.All competent kids, no matter their background, have equal access to high-quality education, are taught by the best teachers possible, are kept in school until they graduate, and have their achievements more publicly celebrated.The economy requires individualized approaches to policymaking and degree-level programming (Marmolejo, 2016).Nevertheless, Abel et al. (2014) noted that graduates who are just starting out in their jobs often need time to move into the labor market.These issues are not unprecedented occurrences.They found that having a degree from an accredited institution or university was a major factor in finding successful employment after graduation.This indicates that students, especially those with greater inherent skills and abilities who may have better labor market results, should select a degree program based on their skill level.
Higher education is one of the most important tools for meeting the educational problems of the 21st century by implementing necessary reforms in the areas of teaching, research, and outreach.The implementation of these changes has become a significant problem for all Filipino HEIs.Producing fullyequipped graduates who would take what they have learnt in school and apply it in their individual work settings is one strategy for tackling these issues (Tertiary Education Commission, 2009).
Unemployment and underemployment are major issues in the Philippines compared to other Asian countries.These problems have plagued the nation for decades.Permanent increases in both the working-age population and the size of the labor force always outpace the rate at which new jobs are created in the economy.This issue has spread as higher education institutions in the Philippines continue to pump out graduates with degrees in fields as diverse as business, engineering, the health sciences, agriculture, and more (de Ocampo, Bagano, & Tan, 2012).This void necessitates collaboration between academic institutions, businesses, and governments to ensure successful graduate employment.Success in making the leap from student to worker can be achieved by an emphasis on narrowly focused knowledge and the development of marketable abilities, as well as through effective partnerships between educational institutions and businesses (Drine, 2017).A graduate tracer study can be used to assess the efficacy of courses and programs offered by the school.It provides the bare essentials of where the grads are and what they're doing professionally.The findings of such a survey could provide valuable insight into the value of higher education and training for both students and potential employers.

International Tracer Study Viewpoint
The Philippines' higher education institutions have a strong reputation for producing graduates who go on to secure satisfying careers.Educational institutions frequently use tracer studies to investigate the employment prospects of their graduates (de Ocampo, Bagano, & Tan, 2012).Rogan and Reynolds (2016) argued the same thing, saying that a Graduate Tracer Study (GTS) can help in implementing policies and ensuring equity in higher education.Policymakers have been urged to prioritize the earliest possible stages of college preparation for students coming from the least well-resourced schools.They also argued that, rather than addressing graduate unemployment by confronting students' educational paths, the problem should be approached from the perspective of better matching graduates with the labor market by addressing oversupply-side issues and accounting for the way in which employer preferences and employment practices shape labor demand.
Education mismatches, on the other hand, seem to capture various facets of the correctness of the job-worker connection, and so have distinct effects for workers (both in monetary and non-monetary terms).Employees see skill gaps as more pressing than academic gaps.The impacts of education mismatches on wages and job satisfaction are substantially milder than those of talent mismatches (Badillo-Amador & Vila, 2013).
Lessons learned from a first-of-its-kind GTS at Moi University were employed by Badiru and Wahome (2016) in their own research.In their study, they propose a seven-step GTS plan tailored to the requirements of East Africa.Graduates' recommendations, information feedback, and evaluative proposals about their experiences during degree study and transfer to the labor market contribute much to the improvement of the university's education and services.So, the purpose of this article was to inspire action in implementing and institutionalizing GTS at East African tertiary institutions in order to ensure quality education for all students.This paper's novelty and significance lay in the fact that it makes the first ever recommendation for a guide for GTS that is appropriate and tamed for East Africa.The results of a tracer study conducted in Ghana provided evidence that the program's content led to an increase in graduates' employment performance.In areas such as "teamwork abilities" and "increased work competence," graduates were rated "extremely high" by their managers.Osei et al. (2015) suggested that the Institute of Online Learning and the Department of Mathematics use the study's findings or conclusions to reevaluate their curricula in light of current needs in the workplace.

A Tracer Degree from a Filipino University
In order to determine what constitutes a center of excellence and a center for the development of degree programs, the Philippine Commission on Higher Education (CHED) has ordered HEIs to carry out tracer studies.The Accrediting Agency for Chartered Colleges and Universities in the Philippines (AACCUP), Inc., for example, also requires the graduate profile as part of the documentation they need to grant accreditation.A reevaluation of the factors affecting and contributing to the job status of graduates is possible with the data collected from a tracer study.According to the available literature, the vast majority of graduates obtained employment in their home communities, most commonly in the public sector.
Over 85 percent of respondents in a tracer study of 200 B.S. CS grads from 2004-2009 at Lyceum of the Philippines University (LPU) were employed.Most of them are employed in managerial, advisory, or technical capacities (Macatangay, 2013).Meanwhile, a tracer study at Philippine Normal University (PNU) revealed that communication, human relations, leadership, research, and problem-solving abilities were the most important for recent grads to have in order to secure employment (Gines, 2014).Undergraduate programs already exist, and their graduates have rated them as "very adequate and very relevant."Nonetheless, these programs still need to be brought up to international standards, updated so that they reflect the competency framework of South East Asian Teachers in the 21st century, and incorporate lifelong learning skills.As Gines (2014) pointed out, a university-wide tracer study should be an annual tradition.But GTS shouldn't only ask grads about their experiences, it should also solicit feedback from hiring managers.
Similarly, Celis, Festijo, and Cueto (2013) found that human relations and communication skills were the most valuable ones taught at the Lyceum of the Philippines.Employers want experts rather than generalists, as was shown by Lalican's (2007) tracer research, and they also value graduates who can work well with others.
From its inception on June 2, 1924, the institution has been turning out graduates across a wide range of academic disciplines.Therefore, it is important to track their movements using a tracer study, which could add to the body of knowledge regarding the effectiveness of this method for keeping tabs on and assessing educational programs.The results can be applied to the fields of institutional reform and quality control with great success.Finally, policymakers would be able to use the results of this research to shape a curriculum update in order to better serve the needs of an increasingly specialized labor force.

METHODOLOGY
This is a descriptive study and used documentary analysis, survey questionnaire and individual interview.The respondents were the graduates of the four programs from 2013-2017.Samples were determined using the Paguso formula.The questionnaire was prepared and validated to assess their employability together with the recommendation to enhance the curricular offerings and instruction.
Documentary analysis was done through data collection from different offices of the college registrar, Research Development and extension services and Human Resource.Varied statistical tools were used for in-depth valid and reliable analysis and interpretation of the data.Frequency count mean percentage was used to describe the employment of the respondents and the areas needing among graduates and curriculum.The mean will be used to determine the employability of the graduates.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Profile of the BSA, BAT, BSAD and BSVT Graduates from year 2013-2017
As shown in table 1, there were 239 actual respondents for four programs where 52.72% of them are female and 47.28% are male.It can be noted also in the table that 60.25% of the respondents are young which ranges from 21-30 age bracket while 39.75% of them ranges from 31-40 year old.It is interesting to note that most of the respondents are young which implies that the graduates of these programs are capable enough in doing their job.As to civil status, 60.25% of the respondents are still single while 39.75% of them are married.Table 2 shows the educational background of the graduates of the campus in which it can be noted in the table that out of the 62 total respondents of the BSA program, 53.22% of then are licensed agriculturists and there are 12.90% licensed teachers.Same with the BAT programs that 40% of the respondents are licensed agriculturists and there are 11.11% licensed teachers.As to the BSAD graduates, 71.43% are now a licensed teacher while there are 2.86% licensed agriculturists.For the BSVT graduates, there are 3.22% licensed teacher and no licensed agriculturists because they are not qualified to take the licensure examinations for agriculturists.It is interesting to note in this table that more than 50% of the graduates of board programs are now licensed in their fields while other graduates of BSA, BAT and BSVT took another efforts to qualify in the licensure examination for teachers that is why there are respondents of these program are also a license teachers even though they are not a BSAD graduates.
It can be noted also in this table that almost 50% of the graduates took their courses in Sorsogon State College Castilla Campus for the reason that they have prospects for immediate employment after graduation.Table 2 shows also that 50% of the graduates pursued advance study for their professional development.
Table 2 The 37% of the respondents are presently employed as technicians and associated professionals, while 25.52% are professional teachers while 12% of the total respondents are part of the government agencies and special interest organizations as managers and supervisors.It is notorious in this table that 16% of the BSVT graduates are employed in market sales where they were engaged in Feeds Company.It is very clear in this table that 61.92% of the graduates of this program are presently employed in agricultures, hunting and forestry sector while 33.05% of them are employed in the educations and 5.02% are in manufacturing sectors.These data shows that the graduates of these programs are employed in line with specialization.
One of the interesting data that can be noted in the table is that 38.49% of the graduates had their first job less than a month or one month to six months after graduation while 35.56% of them had land in their first job seven to eleven months after graduation.It can be seen in the table that 97.49% of the graduates are presently employed locally while 2.51% are employed outside the country.It shows that the graduates of these programs are capable and has the opportunity of having their job locally and in abroad.4 reveals that 37.23 % of the respondents which are employed both in government and private companies has a monthly income ranging from 10,000 to less than 15,000 pesos while 16.32% of them has a monthly income ranging from 15,000 to less than 20, 000 pesos.It is also shown in the table that 3.34% of the respondents has a monthly income of 25,000 and above.Results implies that graduates of these programs are capable and could seek a job with high monthly salary.This data is in comparable to the results of the study of Hubilla 2013 et.al wherein they stated in their study BAT graduates were able to find a job that has a salary ranges from 11,000 to 15,000 pesos monthly.Below P5,000.00P5,000.00 to less than 10,000.00P10,000.00 to less than 15,000.00P15,000.00 to less than 20,000.00P20,000.00 to less than 25,000.00P25,000.00 and above It was shown in the previous tables that almost half of the respondents are employed in agricultural sector and now it is clearly indicated in table 5 that 68.62% of their current job is relevant to the course while there were 31.38% of them are employed in not related to the program.It is interesting to see in this table that respondents were able to deal with people and their job since the competencies that they have learned from the school like human relations skills, communication skills, problem-solving skills were very useful in their current job.While self-employed graduates were obviously using their entrepreneurial skills in doing their business.
It is also shown in this table the reasons of the graduates in accepting their job wherein 39.75% of them decided to accept the job because of the salaries and benefits while 37.66 percent considered the job because it is related to the special skills that they have learned in their course.Some of them considers that it is a challenge to their career while others consider the proximity of the workplace to their residences.Problems met by the employed graduates Results revealed that the number one problem encountered of the 30.12%respondents being employed is the limited exposure/attendance to trainings/seminars and workshops since they are handling supervisory positions wherein, they are handling people to be managed for the efficiency and productivity of the company.(Diaz, 1993) stated with his findings that majority of the employed graduates holding positions required full utilization of their skills and trainings related to their specialization.Another problem that was encountered by the employed graduates is the delayed salary which was commonly experienced by the non-permanent employee both in government and private sectors.

Total
It is revealed in table 7 that the self-employed graduates who are engaged in enterprise/business have encountered three major problems namely: limited financial budget to start and expand the business; lack of familiarity prevailing marketing strategy and lack of opportunity to attend trainings related to their job.(Klein, 1990), stated that there's a need in educating students for career in agriculture and natural resources demand grater skills plus a more holistic perspective on interaction with society.
Table .7. Problems met by the self-employed graduates

Work Performance of Graduates
Table 8 reveals that the employers are satisfied with performance of the graduates as to the ability of the graduates to understand and follow instructions, extent of knowledge of his/her work and to make innovations or strategies towards work.As to the ability to their work, graduates were rated by their employer with an almost very satisfactory rating in each indicator.It can be noted in the table that graduates has a very satisfactory rating on the timeliness of the submission of reports and accomplishments and their interests in doing their work.
It is also shown in the table below that the graduates have a very satisfactory rating from the employers in terms of their loyalty to the company's interest and they have these attributes of being honest, trustworthy and cooperative.These performance indicators show that they really learned and develop their human skills as one of the competencies that have been mentioned in the previous discussions that are very useful to their work.Other

Table 1 .
Profile of the BSA/BAT/BSAD and BSVT Graduates of SSC-CC from year 2013-2017 It is shown in table 3 that 97.91% of the respondents are employed and 46.86% of them has permanent status in their job while 40.17% and 17.53% are casual and contractual respectively.It is also shown in this table that 2.09% of the total respondents are self-employed in which they are engaged in selling agricultural products and agricultural inputs.

Table 3 .
Employment Status of BSA, BAT, BSAD and BSVT Graduates of SSC-CC from year 2013-2017

Table 4 .
Profitability of Employed and self-employed Graduates Present Job Relation to the curriculum

Table 5 .
Relevance of the present job of the Graduates to the curriculum

Table 6 .
Problems met by employed graduates