Page 3 - euroguidance-insight-newsletter-2013-autumn

Career Week 2013 in Latvia

With the aim of motivating young people to be active in planning their careers, Career Week 2013
took place on 7-11 October in 11 of Latvia’s largest cities. This initiative of the Euroguidance Centre
in Latvia was supported by the Centre’s host institution, the State Education Development Agency,
and by hundreds of volunteers: teachers, local government and school board administrators, busi-
ness people and NGO’s. This year 24,197 participants (a little over 1% of Latvia’s total population)
found out about careers, were inspired by different professionals, visited businesses and learned
about themselves, their abilities and talents.

“What we witnessed during Career ployers, as well as vocational and Liepāja - young people partici-
Week gives us great satisfaction, higher education institutions. In pated in a computer simulation
because people have started talk- addition to on-site activities, game for creating innovation.
ing and thinking about careers as a young people were encouraged to
part of life as a whole, not just a consider their future careers Rēzekne - there was a creative
narrow direction. Last year for the through the interactive game Fit workshop on 3-D fashion.
first time in Latvia Career week took your future available through the Riga - young people imagined
place in 5 cities, this year in 11, and social network www.draugiem.lv their future career through inspir-
now even more cities have showed 6,600 participants had played the ing career stories told by profes-
interest in joining us next year, game throughout the Career sionals from different sectors,
broadening the geographic scope Week period attended career workshops and
of this activity. Thus we have en-
couraged learning from early stag- Some examples of activities by learned 10 different ways to ex-
es that career is the interplay be- city include: plore which career is right for
tween education, work and person- them.
al life. We hope that some of the Cēsis - young people had the Valmiera - young people imag-
activities that the participating cities chance to use a “career calcula- ined themselves and their city 20
have piloted during Career Week tor” and play simulation war years in the future.
will be taken on board as good games.
practice and implemented regularly Daugavpils - there was an inter- Ventspils - young people attend-
throughout the year. This would active field trip on professions ed the interactive science centre
allow career issues to become an where they learned about the
intrinsic part of the learning process through the centuries. worlds of music and astronomy
and would promote more conscious Gulbene - students participated and forecasted their future in
career decision-making” says Di- in a business simulation game Ventspils.
rector of the State Education De- and a web-based career seminar.
velopment Agency’s Information The range of activities which took
and Career Guidance Department, Jēkabpils - students did role- place during Career Week many
Aleksandra Joma. plays as entrepreneurs. places in Latvia all in the same
time period were an instrument
Career Week 2013 offered a total Jelgava - students visited the for stimulating young people to
of 794 activities spread over 11 “lords of metal” at a training cen- consider how they plan their ca-
cities, including the capital - Riga. tre for metal working. reers and involving them in a kind
Participation in Career Week ac- Kuldīga - there was a student-run of social movement. For more
tivities allowed young people to business fair and a seminar for information you are welcome to
explore different careers and be- teachers and guidance counsel- contact Euroguidance programme
come aware of their oppor-tunities lors on current trends in career manager Brigita Miķelsone at
through meetings with career learning in Latvia and Europe. [email protected].
guidance counsellors, entrepre-
neurs and potential future em-
Photos courtesy of the State Education Development Agency VIAA, Latvia
Career planning workshop:

www.flickr.com/photos/73458727@N06/1028769976
4/in/set-72157636352279763/
Discussing career plans:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/73458727@N06/102879
43863/in/set-72157636352279763/
More Career Week publicity photos:
http://ej.uz/KN2013foto.

Ilze Jansone – Euroguidance Latvia