The National Centre for Research and Development

  Project title

I know, I can, I act. Professionalization of the services of the UKSW Training Centre and Vocational Guidance at the Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski University in Warsaw 

  Name of Beneficiary/Beneficiaries

Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski University in Warsaw

  Name of programme

Knowledge Education Development Operational Programme 

  Competition

Support for academic career offices and other institutions supporting students in the process of entering the labour market

  Project value

PLN 918 520.08

  Funding value

PLN 888 168.05

  Project delivery period

from 1 June 2018 till 30 June 2022

Meet our team

Project manager Anna Fidelus PhD, DSc, Professor at the Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski University in Warsaw

View the results of our work

Photos from the "Employer's Day" event

 

 

What problem is addressed by the project? 

The “I know, I can, I act. Professionalization of the services of the UKSW Training Centre and Vocational Guidance” project assumed direct support for final years students in starting their professional careers. As part of the project, students were provided with the opportunity to participate in individual consultations in the area of vocational guidance using specialized tools such as competency tests or team roles that have not been available at the university until now. The offered tools, which enable realistic assessment of talents or provide objective and authentic information on the level of competences of students as future employees, were discussed in detail together with vocational counsellors. Advisory consultations were an excellent opportunity for in-depth analysis taking into account the students’ knowledge and competences acquired during their studies. The project also included a wide range of trainings in the area of competences desired on the labour market, as well as trainings for people considering starting a business. In addition, during the Employer's Day, students had the opportunity to meet directly with representatives of employers and labour market institutions.

Who uses the project results? 

The results of monitoring of project participants, which was carried out after the completion of a given round of trainings and consultations, were aimed at verifying many aspects of the project. Firstly, the feedback from students after the consultation gave vocational counsellors the necessary knowledge about how the advisory process influenced the situation of graduates on the labour market. What they considered important in retrospect and which matters, in their opinion, should be given special attention. These valuable insights are then used in counselling meetings with other persons. Additionally, positive opinions of participants of individual trainings covered by the project, regarding their future suitability on the market, were passed on to the faculties as recommendations for introducing interesting subjects to the offer of the academic study programme.

What was the greatest challenge during project implementation?

The biggest challenge in the implementation of the project was definitely the situation in which the university found itself as a result of the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic. New circumstances dictated by the constantly changing epidemiological situation in the country surprised each of the parties involved in the project. The lockdown forced the university to close and both trainers and vocational counsellors had to switch to online mode to meet students. This certainly involved the necessity to react quickly when choosing tools that could be conveniently used by both providers and recipients.

Our advice for other applicants

In the current epidemiological situation, the implementation of projects may be exceedingly difficult or even impossible, therefore it is worth carrying out an in-depth SWOT that would consider all possible, even very unlikely scenarios.