Pse?s Construction School Gives Almost 100 Scholarships

• Proeksa Meas
• 31 December 2015
• Construction Focus
• 1876 Views

Since its inception in Cambodia in 1995, Pour Un Sourire D’Enfant (PSE) has become renowned for changing the lives of many young poor Cambodian students and orphans through its free education programs.

Within its vocational training program, PSE has been providing a Building and Construction Training program since 2007. Colin Rogers, PSE’s Dean of Construction School, told Construction and Property Magazine that the school has offered scholarships to 91 poor male and female students from the Stung Meanchey area to study several majors at the institution.

PSE’s Construction School offers four majors to students: Sanitary and Air Conditioning Installation (est. 2007), Electrical Installation, Masonry and Tiling, and Painting and Decorating (est. 2010). All are based on two-year curriculums and although, the school doesn’t cover IT specifically, all students also receive IT training. In the future the school hopes to offer an engineering major and also attract more female students.

For the 2015-2016 academic year 31 students have registered for the 1st year while another 45 students are studying on the 2nd year program. “Besides receiving free tuition, they additionally receive free uniforms, safety equipment, school materials, food, medicine and transportation if required, while many of them are living in the school’s dormitory,” explained Rogers.

What makes this school unique compared to other local construction-related schools are its construction workshops where students practice in an environment similar to real work with modern and quality equipment. In 2012, PSE established the Smile Construction Service (SCS) to provide students the opportunity to practice their professional skills with real work that provides social benefits.

Rogers explained that students receive professional skills training for 2 years with six months in school and another six months on internships for the first and second years. After graduating, it is easier for them to seek employment because most of them are retained by the companies where they do the 2nd internship. The rest are helped by the school’s Student Affairs Officer. All of them can have good jobs within one month after graduation.

“They [students] can get at least $180 per month for doing an internship which will make it easier for them to find employment after graduation because mostly they speak English at school,” said Rogers.

Tem Sarith is a part of the first batch of PSE’s Faculty of Construction. After spending an internship period at DBD Company as a plumber with an initial salary of $110, he is now a Team Leader at Comin Khmere leading a team of over 40 workers with salary of up to $450 per month which has completely changed his life.

Despite its impressive achievements, PSE still faces challenges due to its not-for profit status. With the school offering scholarships to graduated students to go on to university level this year, there will be more pressure on the budget. “As with most organisations, we are always short of money and we need to seriously control our budget. Given more funds we would wish to widen the range of skills taught to include carpentry and engineering,” Rogers explained. “PSE’s vision and vocational training is getting more attention and sponsors and is contributing to building up a skilled workforce in Cambodia”.