Guidance System in Montenegro

OVERVIEW

Ministry of Education in Montenegro established the National Euroguidance centre in 2018, separately located from the main building of the Ministry of Education. The National Euroguidance centre represents a bridge between all stakeholders in the process of supporting young people in their educational and professional choice and career development. This Centre is, exclusively, devoted to youth in education process. Besides, there is a specialized offices names Centre for professional information and counselling in each municipality which are devoted to unemployed adults.

The Euroguidance centre links more actively these Centres with school career guidance system.

POLICY

The Strategy of Lifelong Career Orientation in Montenegro (2016-2020) is a continuation of the measures and activities defined in The Strategy of Lifelong Career Orientation in Montenegro (2011-2015), is based on the achieved level of career orientation in Montenegro, as well as on the need to be further upgraded and institutionally promoted by the career guidance system through defining the priorities, measures and activities necessary for their realization. The career orientation strategy respects the basic principles that are given in the strategic documents of education in Montenegro and are based on common European principles, which are defined in the guide to Enhancing Lifelong Orientation Policies and Systems. They are:

• Raising awareness and knowledge of the need for lifelong learning and career development;
• Empowering Career Orientation Policy at System Level;
• Strengthening career orientation in the education system of Montenegro;
• Strengthening career guidance for employees and the unemployed;
• Quality Assurance in Career Orientation.

By following these principles, it seeks to increase the employability, efficiency and effectiveness of learning and work at school, to strengthen social inclusion, to reduce early school leaving, and to strengthen equality in the educational process.  In accordance with this Strategy, the working group of the Ministry of Education has prepared the Action plan for 2017 - 2018 year.  

The Law on Primary Education prescribes that career orientation is one of the goals of education in elementary school. The Law Vocational Education defines the objectives of professional orientation as "providing the knowledge and skills necessary for life and work, personal interests, professional development of the personality for further education" and "enabling career orientation". The Law on National Vocational Qualifications defines numerous institutions that monitor and analyze the needs of the labor market within their competencies and inform and advise interested candidates and employers. The Law on National Qualifications Framework defines objectives as enabling the provision of lifelong learning and the availability of qualifications, which is important for career orientation. The Law on Employment and Realization of the Rights from the Unemployment Insurance of Montenegro from 2010 defines professional orientation and counseling on career planning as one of the activities in the field of employment.

SERVICES AND PRACTICE

In the Employment Agency of Montenegro there are specialized services dealing with professional orientation and counseling - Centers for professional information and counseling (CIPS). Pedagogical and psychological services in schools are part of the school teams that deal with career orientation. The lack of quality standards at the national level makes it difficult for school career teams to work. The mechanisms of cooperation between the school teams and the services of the Employment Agency dealing with career orientation have not been developed to reach the necessary quality. The Career Center of the University of Montenegro has developed and implemented programs for students: Professional information – for individuals and groups; Professional counseling – for individuals and groups; psychological testing and Career Planning workshops for students. Cooperation between the Employment Agency and the Career Center of the University of Montenegro resulted in the creation of a program of workshops for young students. Within the Ministry of Education, since March 2018, the Euroguidance Center - Career Guidance and Counseling Center has begun to conduct activities in the field of career counseling and improvement of cooperation between schools, the Employment Agency and local communities. This Office for Career Counseling and Mobility provides services available to all citizens of Montenegro.

TRAINING

There are two accredited programs related to career counselling for career practitioners, Career counselling for primary education, accredited by National Educational Centre and Career counselling for Vocational Education, accredited by Centre for Vocational Education.

RESEACH & DEVELOPMENT

One of the key elements of the establishment of the career guidance system in Montenegro is the strengthening of career orientation in the education system. The career orientation within the teaching process in Montenegro started to be implemented with the support of two international projects: GIZ - Designing the Transition of Young People to the World of Work in the Western Balkans and IPA 2008 - Labor Market Reform and Labor Force Development. Within these projects, two training programs for teachers and professional associates for the implementation of professional / career orientation programs in schools were developed: "professional orientation" for elementary school students and "career orientation in secondary schools" for high school students.

Schools in various ways implemented programs through classroom classes, through regular classes, optional courses, free activities, extra-curricular activities, and more. In almost all schools, Career Orientation Teams have been formed. Teams realize workshops and provide support to pupils when choosing further education and occupation or entering the labor market. These programs have encouraged schools to cooperate more with the Employment Service / CIPS, higher education institutions, business organizations, NGOs and others.

The Employment Agency of Montenegro initiated the program "Career Orientation and the Labor Market in Primary and Secondary Schools". This program is being implemented continuously since 2011 and is implemented by the Center for Information and Professional Counseling and Educational Institution. From school year 2014/2015 in a certain number of elementary schools, career orientation is studied as an optional subject. In order to ensure sustainability, it is necessary for responsible institutions and schools in Montenegro to take the necessary measures so that career orientation becomes a mandatory part of the education system. Models of career orientation inclusion in the school curriculum are different: as a special compulsory subject, as a combination with another teaching subject, as an optional subject, as a cross-curricular subject or as a combination of these and some other ways. Finding the appropriate model is a task that needs to be further improved, bearing in mind the positive practices and experiences from the period of implementation of the Strategy of Lifelong Career Orientation in Montenegro (2011-2015). There is no unique model. From the very specifics of the institutions that implement the career guidance program, it depends on which model will prove to be the most effective. From school year 2014/2015 years of elementary schools in Montenegro were given the opportunity to have the optional Professional Orientation course for pupils of the 8^th or 9^th grade with a one-hour lesson. As one of the conditions for studying this subject at school is to have a teacher in the school who has completed the training according to a program accredited by the Institute for Education and approved by the National Council for Education. In 2015, the program of teachers’ professional development "Professional Orientation in Elementary Schools" and "Career Orientation in Secondary Schools" was accredited. In a school year 2016/2017 the program "Career Leadership Skills in Secondary Vocational Schools" was accredited. In schools whose teachers have completed training, school teams for career guidance and counseling have been formed, but in the next period it is necessary to involve more school administrations and teachers as well as parents in this process in order to make career counseling services available to each student. Also, in 2018 Ministry of Education as National Euroguidance Centre prepared the Guide for career guidance counsellors in VET education.

ETHICS

Ethical standards among career guidance team in school system have not been established yet.