VET SCHOOLS FINALIZE BUSINESS PLANS TO MEET NEW CHALLENGES OF RECOVERY

Initial vocational education and training
25.10.2022
Investing in the competence and skills of VET school managers will contribute to the readiness of Ukrainian VET schools to meet the challenges of future recovery.

On October 25, 2022, the EdUP Project completed the ambitious plan - a training course on business planning for vocational school leaders. The authors of the best business plans were awarded prizes and, most importantly, earned a real chance to design the schools of their dreams.

The training started in August. It was then that the EdUP Project dared to take a bold step - to conduct a several-day offline training in the small western Ukrainian city of Kamianets-Podilskyi. The majority of participants attended the event offline, while some joined online. The training was conducted by a reputable Develor Ukraine consulting agency.

Moving to the next step, all participants were divided into teams, each representing one recipient institution. Their task was to design their own business plans step-by-step, moving from one task to another, like defining the strategic goal, accessing challenges, and conducting a SWOT analysis. So that the work proceeded in the right direction, the trainers run online consultations with the teams and provided feedback on the homework assignments. We’d admit that applying the theory in practice turned out to be quite a laborious task.

During three months of systematic work, the teams developed business plans and prepared final presentations for the jury. They delivered final presentations online amid air alarms, power outages, and lacking steady internet connections.

The most successful in their endeavors were the teams of the Odesa Vocational Education Centre (I place), the Pryvilsk Vocational Lyceum, and the Pryluky Vocational Lyceum of the Chernihiv Regional Council (II place). And the bronze prize winners were the Kyiv Regional Higher Vocational College of Construction, the Kovel Center of Vocational Education, and the Chortkiv Higher Vocational College.

“Our project will follow up and we expect to participate in the implementation of many strategic initiatives outlined by our recipient institutions in their business plans,” Sonja Loosli, EdUP Project Manager quoted as saying.

All training materials are available on the EdUP project website via the link (in Ukrainian).

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The Public-Private Partnership to Improved Plumbing Education (EdUP) is a project of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, in partnership with Geberit Trading LLC, implemented by Swisscontact Foundation for Technical Cooperation and supported by the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine.

2020 - 2027
Ukraine
Initial vocational education and training
Public Private Partnership to Improved Professional Education in Ukraine
The EdUP project, including its Scale UP initiative, is playing a crucial role in addressing the serious challenges faced by Ukraine's vocational education and training (VET) sector during wartime. The war has destroyed many VET schools and exacerbated a skills shortage that affects several sectors, despite employers' willingness to offer competitive wages and resources. EdUP aims to rebuild and improve vocational schools and break stereotypes about vocational graduates. By decentralising training and aligning it with local economic needs, the project will improve the quality of vocational training, attract additional resources, work with the private sector, and modernise education to equip Ukraine's workforce for today's demands.