Career counseling in Montenegrin high schools does not exist, and it would be of great benefit for the development and employment of young people, according to high school students. This opinion is also shared by the Ministry of Education, Science and Innovation, and they think that it is important that this area be systematically set up and legally and institutionally regulated.
When young people decide to choose a college or future profession during high school, they can consult on their own with professors, psychologists or pedagogues who are trained for this, but career counseling services are not available to them in formal education.
The Union of High School Students told "Vijesta" that they consider it a great loss for students that there is no mandatory career counseling in high schools. They pointed out that even primary school students are not familiar with the majors offered by secondary schools, so the journey of not being informed about their future profession begins even earlier.
"Experience and conversations with young people definitely confirm that we need a career advisor. Career counseling can provide significant benefits to young people in Montenegro in several ways. It would help us better understand our interests, skills, and values, which directs us toward appropriate educational and professional paths. "Counselors can provide updated information on the demand for certain occupations and thus broaden the picture for young people about which occupations are available for further training and what is the perspective for employment with a certain profession," said the high school organization.
They also think that career counseling can facilitate contacts with employers and enable young people to learn more about internships and workplaces. Support can be provided in the development of entrepreneurial ideas and plans, according to them, which opens the door to new opportunities. Counseling can help young people understand global trends and how they relate to the labor market in Montenegro, thereby increasing their competitiveness.
They believe that this service should be systematically and organized available to young people throughout the year for all questions and concerns. If this is not possible in schools, they suggest independent state services at the school or municipal level.
"This work should include visits to all secondary schools in Montenegro, as well as the creation of workshops, trainings and promotions where young people can develop skills such as writing CVs (biographies), preparing for interviews, as well as for the preparatory exam itself where necessary ", they concluded from the Union of High School Students.
From the Ministry of Education, Science and Innovation (MPNI), which he manages Anđela Jakšić Stojanović, told "Vijesti" that they plan in detail goals, tasks and activities related to career guidance and counseling (KVS). The preparation of the Career Guidance and Counseling Development Strategy is planned for next year.
Research at the national and European level shows that career guidance and counseling has positive effects in terms of unemployment prevention, reduction in the number of those who drop out of school, increase in interest in school and success in school, successful transition from lower to higher levels of education, as well as in terms of social inclusion , they said from that department of the Government.
"In order for career guidance and counseling to be truly effective, it is necessary for this area to be systematically set up and legally and institutionally regulated," they stressed.
Support for young people, a step towards the EU
The Ministry of Education and Culture informs that in the process of Montenegro's approach to the European Union, through reforming the policy of education, employment, economic and social development, the need to define priorities, measures and activities that will provide support to all individuals in recognizing and developing their abilities, knowledge and skills they need for successful education and career management.
In this sense, two strategic documents for the development of career orientation have been defined in the last decade, in which it is defined as "... a series of activities that allow an individual, regardless of age or life period, at any moment of life, to assess their own abilities , competences and interests, to make decisions regarding his education, training and qualifications and to manage his own life paths in educational, work and other environments, in which his capacities and competences are learned and/or used".
"Increased awareness of the importance of career guidance and counseling for society and the individual was accompanied by legislative changes, so career orientation is prescribed as one of the goals of basic education," said the MPNI.
Also, in the Law on Vocational Education, the goals of vocational education are defined as "providing knowledge and skills necessary for life and work; personal interests; professional development of personality and for further education".
It is the right of young people to have access to information about the fields and occupations that concern them, and being informed is the key to participation in the events and development of the community.
The project "Designing the transition of young people into the world of work" envisages a program for the development of professional counseling for young people with the aim of better informing young people about the world of work, strengthening and recognizing their own capacities, as well as opportunities that young people in Montenegro can use, which will contribute to improving the position improve when it comes to professional information, said Jakšić Stojanović from the department.
The results of the research conducted by the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ) showed a positive attitude and great interest of students in the professional orientation program.
One of the main tasks under the Career Guidance and Counseling Development Program is to strengthen the KVS process in primary and secondary schools in such a way as to offer systematic provision and support to students along with the training of school administrations and school teams.
"The training would include interpreting information on the labor market, using technologies for KVS, involving parents, leading group and individual activities of KVS, motivating students to participate in KVS, close cooperation with employers/employers' organizations, etc.," they specified.
When asked if they had cooperation with the Employment Office of Montenegro (ZZCG) in this field, they answered that at the beginning of 2000, the reform of all services in the Employment Office, including professional orientation, was started.
This resulted in the establishment of the Center for Information and Professional Counseling (2007) within that institution in Podgorica. By 2012, eight centers for information and professional counseling (CIPS) were established.
The International Labor Organization recommended that CIPS centers be formed as separate organizational units within the regional units of the Institute in order to make their work more visible.
"However, legal solutions did not allow such type of organization. With the adoption of the Law on mediation in employment and rights during unemployment from 2019, the emphasis in the work of counselors at the Employment Office was placed on the unemployed and other job seekers, and much less attention was focused on work with primary and secondary school students," they said. are from MPNI.
Strengthening coordination and cooperation at the state level is planned by clearly dividing the roles and responsibilities of all actors involved in this process. It is necessary to appoint a formal entity that will strategically manage, an inter-ministerial working group or a national forum for lifelong guidance.
The increased exchange of data between institutions, and therefore the use of statistics and information on the labor market in the KVS, will improve the entire process. In addition to coordination and cooperation at the state level, similar local partnerships with other actors should be established, whereby secondary schools (especially vocational schools) are the leaders of the process", they said.
"At the same time, we should count on and use the NGO sector to reach those who need KVS. Specific methodologies and tools should be developed to meet the needs of different users. As we live in a technologically advanced era, the use of ICT for career guidance and counseling is a common element for all three areas", they concluded.
NEET youth mostly without systemic support
The NGO Forum MNE, among other things, deals with mapping and developing programs that will respond to the needs of a certain group of young people who are not employed, are not in the process of education or training, the so-called. NEET youth (not in employment, education or training).
From that organization, they appeal to the competent institutions to work through a multisectoral approach to continuously provide an adequate support system for this vulnerable category of young people.
Career counseling would not only help the NEET population in finding better living conditions, but would also have a preventive effect, so young people would find themselves in that position less often.
Based on the situational analysis of "NEET youth in Montenegro", the MNE Forum came to the conclusion that it is necessary to work on improving the quality and availability of career counseling programs in order to provide adequate support to young people in making key career decisions. In the Forum, MNEs emphasize the importance of improving the quality and availability of career counseling programs, with the aim of providing support to young people in the process of making key career decisions. They believe that, in addition to the relevant Ministries, the Central Ministry of Education and Culture plays a central role in providing career counseling services, since their main task is to match supply and demand on the labor market through employment mediation.
"In addition, ZZZCG offers a number of opportunities intended for professional guidance and job search through the provision of information and counseling to its users, including young people," they emphasized.
Young people are proportionally represented in active employment policy programs - namely, they make up 37 percent of the users of the programs offered by ZZZCG, while at the same time they make up 36 percent of the registered unemployed.
"If we take into account that, apart from the measures intended for the professional rehabilitation and employment of persons with disabilities, young people are the only specific category for which specialized measures have been designed, we can conclude that they are certainly in the focus of the creators of employment policies", it is written in the study prepared for the needs NEET youth.
However, as stated, ZZZCG is facing numerous challenges. First of all, insufficient attention is paid to young people without qualifications. Although this category of young people can participate in all available measures, provided they meet the eligibility criteria, the only active employment policy program that is adapted to this category and that leads to the improvement of their professional competences are short professional trainings provided by authorized institutions, which contain theoretical ( 30%) and a practical (70%) component.
To this end, ZZZCG must go through a process of adaptation, they assess, in order to tackle the challenges of modern Montenegrin society that is going through digital transformation and so that this institution is ready to take on its share of the burden in implementing new, more effective youth support programs .
"The main challenge is the reform of the organizational, procedural and management structures, as well as the provision of services offered by ZZZCG. Furthermore, the management staff of ZZZCG must be ready for the redistribution of human resources of this institution, that is, an increase in the number of staff dealing with direct contact with clients at the expense of management and administrative positions. This must first of all be implemented in response to the implementation of the Youth Guarantee program in which the Employment Service is the main implementation partner in Montenegro", they concluded.
ZZZCG did not respond to "Vijesti" questions about career counseling services for citizens with an emphasis on NEET youth.
This text was created within the project "Inclusive progress towards EU integration - Empowerment of civil society for effective contribution to the inclusive development of local communities", which is financed by the European Union and the Ministry of Public Administration of Montenegro, and implemented by the Forum MNE and the Center for Youth Education. The content of this text is the sole responsibility of the MNE Forum and does not reflect the views of the European Union and the Ministry of Public Administration of Montenegro
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