Palace of Professions – A complex career guidance centre

The Szolnok Vocational Training Centre considers career orientation and supporting career choice a priority. Member institutions regularly renew their activities in their bid to promote sectors and professions and maintain interest. The Palace of Professions opened in December 2023 in Szolnok, in the city centre. The career orientation centre covers almost 200 m2 to present occupations in the technical and service sectors alike, in an interesting, interactive and spectacular way. It is also a way to pique and increase the interest of parents and children in vocational training. When the centre opened during the Christmas festivities, visitors were welcomed in the Advent Village where they could engage in a variety of activities and games linked to the festive season while also gaining an insight into the world of the professions. From 2024 onwards, visits can be booked in advance for primary school students in Grades 5, 6, 7 and 8 who can participate in complex career orientation and guidance programmes under the well-known motto of “Watch it, grab it and do it”. The programmes provide students with full information about the new VET system, the sectors and occupations offered by the member institutions. They can try everything, fill in self-awareness questionnaires, watch films that present different occupations, and access a broader range of services, which now includes customised career guidance and an adult learning information point. In addition, they now regularly host groups of pre-school children in the afternoons, with a range of age-appropriate activities. Parents pick up their pre-school children at the Palace of Professions, so parents can also be addressed to promote courses especially designed for adults. The free programmes can be attended individually without registration. The Palace of Professions and the programmes implemented there can be freely adopted by other vocational training institutions, adjusted to local specificities.