Seventy university students recently completed Oracle's graduate programme.
Graduates join Oracle for a 10-month course that includes a generic induction followed by specific learning paths such as classroom training and workplace experience.
The programme has been running for 13 years, and selects and invests in university graduates to enhance their ICT skills while preparing them for employment, notes Pieter Bensch, Oracle SA MD and VP.
Speaking at the intern graduate event, Bensch noted that the programme gave the university graduates a competitive advantage in the job market.
"The graduate programme started out small and evolved into a full-size project with a key interest to develop the youth. Africa is a focus area for Oracle and we're looking to increase the sales force by 25% in the ICT industry," said Bensch.
"The selection process is aligned to what Oracle would adopt for a permanent employee; the graduates apply and are interviewed and selected through Oracle's standard recruitment process and this ensures we select the best individuals for the programme," he added.
According to Bensch, programme participants had a 100% chance of employment.
"A 100% employment rate refers to our target in ensuring the graduates are employable. The focus is making all of them employable at the end of the programme, be it within Oracle itself or within the Oracle economy, such as with Oracle's partners and customers. In the current programme, 80% of them have obtained formal and permanent employment," Bensch added.
Bensch noted that Oracle offers different programmes to various universities in SA through the Oracle Academy.
"ICT graduates with an interest in enhancing their skills need only apply to get on the programme; once they pass the tests and interviews, the process is streamlined and the graduates should be able to see the results of their efforts," he concluded.
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