Swatar Training Centre honours graduates

Swatar Training Centre (STC) has honoured its first complement of students to be awarded a B.Sc. (Hons) in computing and information systems from the London Metropolitan University.

The students, 11 of whom were awarded first class (Hons) degrees, completed four to six years of modular, part-time study to gain the internationally recognised degree. STC students made up 15 per cent of those receiving first-class degrees. In addition, student Michael Bonello received a scholarship for an M.Sc. degree.

Speaking at the ceremony, Fang Fang, of the London Metropolitan University, said the number of STC students gaining first class degrees is significant considering the course attracts students from across the world.

Family, friends, STC staff and representatives from the London Metropolitan University joined the students at a ceremony at Le Meridien Phoenicia.

Swatar chief executive officer Patrick Pullicino said that while the degree awards were the focus of the evening, equally important was the fact that all the graduates had good jobs.

"More than half the students came to us unemployed. Thanks to our partnership with the Employment and Training Corporation many of them were able to have their training paid for through the scheme."

Some 35 of the centre's students are currently employed within the IT industry either locally or abroad and most have been working for a number of years.

Swatar Training Centre started life just five years ago as a public private initiative between MITTS and Nucleus Training - a collaborative venture comprising some 14 IT firms.

Over 1,000 students have attended NCC Education courses and student performance has been exceptional, the centre said. For a number of years, STC students have received various achievement awards for their performance on globally recognised certification courses.

Jeremy Boucher from NCC Education announced his organisation would be setting up a training centre of excellence in Malta next year.

"This new facility will run our e-Learning programmes and serve as a test-bed for new courses and materials to be introduced by us worldwide. The benefits for us, for STC and for Malta are endless," he added.