The Impact of Industrial Practical Skills on Fashion students in Ghanaian Polytechnics (A case Study of Kumasi and Accra Polytechnics)

The main objective of the research was to determine the importance of students industrial practical skills program in the curriculum of the polytechnic education, how well the program is organized, its benefits and challenges that confront the organization. The research used qualitative method of collecting data using questionnaires and interviews. In all a total of 200 questionnaires were administered and 195 were returned. The population comprised of students on the program, past students, employers of fashion industries and homes and liaison officers from the two study areas. Qualitative and quantitative means were used to present the data in the form of charts, tables and texts. The most significant results were that students and the school were the main financiers of the program and finding places for the program was still a difficult task for both students and school. The rating for the organization of the program showed that 44.1% of the respondents rated it as average, 25.9% as good or excellent whilst 29.96% rated it as poor. More than 2/3 (76.29%) of the employers benefitted very much from the program as against the rest, (23.6%) which either did not benefit much or not at all. While less than 2/3 (64.10%) of the past students were employed based on prior experience on the program, (35.9%) were employed using different criteria. Suffice to that more than 9/10 (95. 24%) of the respondents reported of the program being either very important or important as against a few (4.76%) considering it as less important. Two-thirds (66.7%) of employers preferred engaging the services of people with industrial practical experience whereas the rest (33.3%) not using that as prerequisite for employment. The notable challenges that confronted students on the program were 37.4% financial, 30.53% accommodation, 20.61% less attention from the places of attachment with the rest 6.1% and 5.34% accounting for disrespect from workers and other challenges respectively. It was also realized that most (63.3%) of the trainees found it difficult while looking for placement with the rest (37.6%) seeing it otherwise. In spite of the challenges, close to total respondents of (98.85%) were either satisfied or very satisfied with the program. The principal conclusion was that though majority of the students were satisfied with the program pragmatic steps should be taken to improve it. Keywords: Industrial Practical Skills, Polytechnic Education, TVET, Fashion Departmen