The European Union (EU), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the State Agency on Vocational Education (SAVE) continue joint efforts on supportive measures to further develop human resources in vocational education in Azerbaijan. 

As part of the “VET for the Future” project, a two-day event was held to help equip current career center specialists with up-to-date knowledge and skills in the field and strengthen their work capacities.  

The event in Ganja brought together 25 people including 15 career specialists from Baku, Barda, Jalilabad, Ganja and Gabala, the experts from the Education Institute of the Republic of Azerbaijan, and the European Training Foundation, as well as coaching specialists and representatives of the organizing parties. 

The initiatives on career consultation, development of human capital and increasing potentials are carried out based on the project’s recommendations for Career Centers in the area of vocational education. The participants discussed international practices and recommendations on lifelong learning and career counseling, also viewed planning on talent management in education. 

The participants were informed about the expected local methodical approaches for career counselors and introduced to the career platform and mobile application developed by the project in career consultation. 

Currently, four career centers established by the project are operating at full capacity in the Baku State Vocational Education Center on Culture and Crafts, the Baku State VE Center on Tourism and Social Services, the Baku State VE Center on Industry and Innovations, and Ganja State VE Center on Industry and Technologies. 3 career centers are provided with career activity programme and these centers’ regarding infrastructure works are expected to be completed by the end of 2023 by the project. 

Career counselors provide services to people before and during their studies, and after graduation, as well as to the participants of short-term courses organized in these centers. They continuously inform VET students about job opportunities and career prospects relevant to their qualifications, while closely supporting their professional preparation for the modern work environment. This includes drafting resumes, preparation for interviews and organising trainings in line with the labour market demands. 13 career counselors of these career centers provided around 1000 career counseling services in the last 18 months and 60% of users of career services were men while 40% comprised of women.

The project plans the establishment of career centers in a total of 7 beneficiary vocational education institutions and providing counselors with the appropriate work programme, also supporting them with upskilling programmes. Three more VET providers will receive a career activity programme. 

Media contact:

For media inquiries, please contact Leyla Gurbanova, Project’s Communications and Visibility Specialist at  leyla.gurbanova@undp.org. 

Gulnara Bayramova, Press and Information Officer at the Delegation of the European Union to Azerbaijan at gulnara.bayramova@eeas.europa.eu.

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