Industrial Liaison Office (ILO) & Job Placement Centre (JPC)
A Message from the Sectional Head
Welcome to the Industrial Liaison Office (ILO) and Job Placement Centre (JPC) at Bolgatanga Technical University. We exist to build strong, practical connections between academic training and the demands of the workforce. Our mission is to equip students with real-world skills through structured internships, industrial attachments, international exchanges, and career readiness initiatives. Every year, we facilitate meaningful industry exposure for over 1,200 students across all departments. Despite limited staffing, our team remains driven by innovation, professionalism, and a commitment to national development. We invite industry leaders, alumni, and stakeholders to partner with us in shaping a new generation of skilled, adaptable, and globally competitive graduates.
Vision
Mission
(Assist. Industrial Liaison Officer & Sectional Head)
As a critical arm of the BTU Registry, the ILO operates as the university’s bridge to industry and external partners. Its core responsibilities include coordinating industrial attachments and internships for students, monitoring field supervision, evaluating student performance, and ensuring compliance with academic and industry standards. The ILO also leads the development of employability training programmes, organizes career mentorship and entrepreneurship workshops, and mobilizes external resources for projects that advance student readiness and institutional visibility. It plays a central role in international collaboration by drafting mobility proposals, managing exchange programmes, and supporting global engagement strategies. In addition, the Office supervises auxiliary services such as the University Clinic and supports ongoing
Key Programmes of the Unit
- Attachment Programme (IAP) : The Industrial Attachment Programme (IAP) is the Office’s flagship initiative, annually placing over 1,200 students in real-world industry settings. These placements are backed by structured supervision from more than 30 academic and management staff who assess student performance through field visits, written reports, and evaluations.
- whole-semester internship : Another key programme is the whole-semester internship model for Level-400 students in selected Departments such as Department of Industrial Art, Electrical & Electronics Engineering, Automobilie/Mechanical Engineering, which includes independent projects, oral presentations, and business collaborations.
- Career & Employability Activities/Trainings/Events: The Office also facilitates Precision Quality (PQ) Intergation training in partnership with the Design & Technology Institute (DTI), supports women-led ventures through the HerStart social entrepreneurship programme with Youth Challenge International, and has successfully led grant proposals such as the Daycare Centre construction funded by the Australian High Commission.
The Centre further supports skills development workshops, career orientation sessions, and sensitization campaigns including those on sexual harassment and professional ethics. BTU has also launched international staff and student exchange projects.
Strategic Partnerships/Collaborations
The ILO & JPC thrives on partnerships and collaborations that expand opportunities for students, strengthen faculty capacity, and position BTU as a leader in career-oriented education.
- BTU/ & Technology Institute (DTI/MCF) Partnership
The partnership seeks to achieve the following key objectives:
The integration of the Precision Quality (PQ) Curriculum towards transitioning graduates to work:
- Integrate PQ training a year before programme completion in programmes housed in the department such as Department of Industrial Arts and Fashion, Department of Agricultural Engineering, Department of Hospitality Management, Department of Secretaryship and Management Studies and any other department in the University that finds the need to. All the pre-final year students of different departments are to be covered under this initiative.
- Equip 350 unemployed graduates with relevant employability skills, facilitating their transition to the workforce.
Support Unemployed Alumni:
- Implement a 6-month upskilling programme, termed the Precision Internship, to assist unemployed alumni in gaining skills that enhance their employability, leading to opportunities in wage employment, self-employment, or entrepreneurship.
- Strengthen capacities of Alumni Leadership and provide basic tools and resources to operationalize alumni activities
Enhance Career Development Office:
- Collaborate with BTU to strengthen the capabilities of the Career Centre (Industrial Liaison office & Job Placement Centre-ILO&JPC), equipping it with the tools and resources needed to better support students in their career journeys.
- Facilitate industry mentorship programmes to connect students with professionals, providing guidance and insights into various career paths.
Foster Entrepreneurship:
- Provide select learners with resources to establish small businesses, including startup kits and apprenticeship support kits. This initiative aims to help students not only expand their enterprises but also engage other apprentices in the community.
- Collaborate with DTI to organize job fairs and networking events to connect students with potential employers, increasing their visibility in the job market.
- BTU/YCI Partnership
With Youth Challenge International, the Office delivers the HerStart programme to equip young women with entrepreneurship skills and grant-writing support.
- BTU/FAWE-MCP Collaboration
The Office also partnered with the Forum for African Women Educationalists and the Mastercard Foundation to secure 50 STEM bursaries for underprivileged students, 90% of whom are female.
- BTU/Education Collaborative (EduCollab)/Ashesi University Collaboration
In addition, its collaboration with Ashesi University through the Education Collaborative supports regional efforts in innovation, employability, and policy development.
Through this collaboration, the University has participated a series of Annual Convening organized by the platform to share our experiences and programmes in technical education, employability, entrepreneurship and faculty development issues among others. As a member of the Collaborative, ILO & JPC have accessed $3000 from Ashesi University and implemented an employability project known as ‘Employers Skills Seminars (EMSIS) project’. In addition, BTU has accessed $5000 from the Collaborative and implemented an Entrepreneurship Innovation Centre (EIC) project, which seeks to establish an integrated centre for entrepreneurial activities for the university. Staff of the University have also benefited from various capacity building activities organized by the Collaborative.
- Others
Internationally, the Erasmus+ KA171 programme has opened doors for academic exchange, while support from the Australian High Commission enabled the design and near-completion of an on-campus Daycare Centre, constructed with student labour and faculty guidance as a hands-on learning project.