Thanks to us!

challenge

Potential students are unaware of the benefits of vocational education and its opportunities for adults

Vocational education reform is one of the priorities of the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine. Since its launch in 2019, the Ministry has achieved success in each key area: building training and practical centers, updating educational standards, improving the qualifications of teachers, and establishing international partnerships.

Despite this, the image and stereotypes surrounding vocational schools persist: as of September 1, 2021, two-thirds of school graduates prefer higher education.

The full-scale war has highlighted the value of vocational education and its role in rebuilding the country. Vocational education is  now available for more than just the youth. Adults and internally displaced persons who lost their jobs due to the war can also change their profession and quickly return to the labor market.

To realize their full potential, young people and adults require information about the positive changes in Ukrainian vocational education, the results of itsreform, and how vocational school graduates can contribute to Ukraine's recovery and reconstruction during and after the end of the war.

solutions

Nationwide communication campaign "Thanks to us!"

To raise awareness among Ukrainians about the opportunities and benefits of vocational education, the Internews Ukraine team joined the nationwide communication campaign "Thanks to Us!".

In collaboration with EU4Skills and the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, we developed information products for various target audiences:

• We organized two information sessions for journalists and bloggers in Kyiv with the participation of the Minister of Education and Science of Ukraine, the Directorate of Vocational Education, and visits to vocational schools in the Ukrainian capital.
• We organized two press tours, "New Opportunities for Ukrainian Vocational Education" to vocational schools in Lviv and Rivne oblasts for journalists from all over Ukraine.

• In collaboration with regional journalists, we prepared and published 20 articles about the current opportunities of vocational schools and the benefits of obtaining vocational education in Ukraine.
• We produced videos based on the results of the press tours as well as radio advertisements.
• We launched promotional videos for YouTube.
• Prepared text and design materials for social media and print.
• We created designs for outdoor advertising and online banners and placed outdoor advertising, them throughout Ukrainian regions.

result

Spreading information about the benefits of vocational education in Ukraine, both online and offline

The communication campaign emphasized the benefits of vocational education and training,using real-life examples and inspirational stories to dispel stereotypes about vocational education and training.

The journalists visited leading vocational education institutions in Rivne and Lviv oblasts and witnessed the changes first hand. Through these meetings, the media explored the practices of cooperation with regional enterprises and the potential of vocational education for the reconstruction of Ukraine.

Based on the results of the press tours, journalists produced 15 materials, and the videos of the events were viewed on social media more than 200 thousand times! Undoubtedly, it was Rivne which made the participants of the press tour fall in love with vocational schools: 43% of the region's school graduates chose vocational education, the highest rate in Ukraine. The journalists visited not only vocational schools but also training centers where students, for example, learn the art of molecular cuisine, which was a real eye-opener for the participants of the press tour.

The press tours, as well as two information sessions in Kyiv in March and May 2023, brought together 32 journalists who produced 11 materials.

20 articles about the current capabilities of vocational schools and the benefits of vocational education were read and viewed more than 26 million times in national and regional media. The journalists who worked on these materials noticed a rise in interest in vocational education and the need for more coverage of this topic in their work.

The promotional videos on YouTube were viewed 8,854,141 times, and the three audio spots on two radio stations were heard by more than 3 million listeners.

150 billboards and 70 city lights were installed in the regions of Lviv, Rivne, and Kyiv, with a total of more than 106 million views.

Vocational school graduates will be the backbone of our country during its reconstruction, and we hope that the communication campaign will help encourage yet even more people to pursue modern vocational education in Ukraine.

The project was implemented with the support of the European Union and its member states Germany, Finland, Poland, and Estonia under the EU4Skills: Better Skills for a Modern Ukraine. The program aims to support the implementation of vocational education reform and the modernization of the infrastructure of selected educational institutions. The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of the authors and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union, its Member States, or the Program.