Esta Larosa^1,, Sudji Munadi¹

This study aims to (1) analyze the level of absorption and suitability of the field of work of graduates of the Mechanical Engineering Vocational School in the Yogyakarta Region, (2) find out how the strategies are carried out by the schools to maintain and improve the absorption and relevance of graduates. This research uses a quantitative descriptive approach. Sampling was done using proportional random sampling method. Data collection techniques are done using interview guidelines, observation, and documentation. The subjects of this study were the teacher who manages the special job fair, the head of the study program in the engineering department, the students and the teacher who handled the student industry practice program. The results showed that (1) the percentage of students' absorption in the world of work was 80%, the lowest was 60%, this showed that the incorporation of public and private SMK graduates in Yogyakarta was in the category of functional job readiness, because more than half had entered the world of work, but not all vocational students work according to their fields. The causal factors that influence the discrepancy in the area of student work in the world of work are the lack of cooperation between schools and industry, the availability of jobs in the machining sector is still minimal. (2) Strategies in dealing with technological developments are always carried out by schools to maintain and improve the absorption and relevance of graduates by creating learning variations that support the needs of 4C skills (critical thinking, communication, collaboration and creativity) implementing fun learning strategies, schools also organize machining workshops and seminars on the development of machining technology.

21st-century skills, revolution 4.0, work readiness