P.E.I. program helps post-secondary graduates find jobs

Employers given 50-per-cent wage subsidy for offering work

A pilot program in Prince Edward Island is helping university and college graduates enter jobs related to their field of study, said Innovation and Advanced Learning Minister Allan Campbell.

"We have our first pilot group, 10 well-educated young Islanders, completing the Collaborative Solutions program and coming out with business contacts, hands-on jobs experience and a better sense of the career possibilities where their learning can be applied," said Campbell.

Graduates of the program will be provided with a provincially-funded 50-per-cent wage subsidy for 13 weeks for P.E.I. employers offering work related to their field of study

The province's Career Development Services also received $76,065 in federal youth awareness funding to help link post-secondary graduates with local business through workshops and roundtable events. This funding also supported a labour market and career resource website designed to connect young jobseekers with local employers and available job opportunities.

"Participating in Collaborative Solutions has shown me skills I never realized I had, and given me the confidence to keep pursuing a career change. I have had the privilege to meet local employers one-on-one and participate in events that I would never had the opportunity to do without being part of this project. I definitely feel better prepared to start the next phase of my career knowing that everyone involved in this project is there to support me," said participant Valerie Cole.

Results of the program will be evaluated before a decision is made to extend or re-offer the Collaborative Solutions program, the minister said.

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