International Cooperation

The Regional Center for Vocational Education is a separate subdivision of the State Institution “Luhansk Taras Shevchenko National University,” established in 2015. The very name indicates its key function in the field of vocational education and training (VET) within a large university structure. An important aspect of the university’s current situation is its forced relocation to Poltava in 2022 due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. This context is crucial for understanding the current operational challenges and potential changes in priorities for both the university as a whole and its regional VET center.

Regulations on International Cooperation

Name and Legal Status:

• Full legal name: Separate Subdivision “Regional Center for Vocational Education of the State Institution ‘Luhansk Taras Shevchenko National University.'”
• Subordination: State Institution “Luhansk Taras Shevchenko National University.”
• Legal status: VET Institution.

The definition of the legal status as a VET Institution is fundamental, as it clearly indicates the main activity of the Regional Center. Its main goal is to provide practical, skill-oriented education, even though it operates within the structure of a national university.

Specific Mission and Goals:

• Provision of vocational education and training (VET).
• Training of skilled workers.
• Reorganization and consolidation of separate university subdivisions involved in vocational training.
• Activities are governed by the Regulations on the Separate Subdivision “Regional Center for Vocational Education of the State Institution ‘Luhansk Taras Shevchenko National University'” in accordance with licenses (available in the public state register of educational entities).

Main Activities and Services:

• Provision of vocational training programs.
• Operation of branches in Starobilsk, Rubizhne, and Kreminna (as of 2021).
• Training in the following professions:
  • Office Clerk (Accounting) – after 11th grade. Duration of study – 10 months.
  • Tailor – after 11th grade.
  • Electrician for repair and maintenance of electrical equipment – after 9th grade. Duration of study – 2 years 10 months.

Teaching Staff:

The teaching staff includes teachers of general education subjects, for the preparation of students receiving general education, and teachers of vocational and technical subjects (special disciplines) for the preparation of students receiving a working profession in a specific field of training, as well as industrial training masters. The teaching staff of the Regional Center includes both young specialists with appropriate educational qualifications who are beginning their pedagogical experience, and highly qualified teachers with significant teaching experience who have obtained pedagogical titles such as “Teacher-Methodologist,” “Senior Lecturer,” etc. The qualitative composition of industrial training masters consists of highly qualified teachers in a specific field of training for skilled workers, who have many years of teaching experience, work experience in enterprises, and have obtained the title of “Master of the first (second) category.” The main teaching staff consists of 10 specialists.

Student Body:

Currently, the regional center has 72 students.

Target Audience:

• Students seeking vocational education and specific skills for employment.
• Graduates of 9th and 11th grades, as well as adults interested in obtaining a professional qualification.

Key Features and Advantages:

• Subordination to an authoritative national university with a long history and strong reputation.
• Focus on providing practical, labor market-oriented skills.
• Adaptability and resilience demonstrated by the university in continuing its activities despite the ongoing full-scale war and relocation.
• Potential for collaboration within the broader university structure for interdisciplinary programs or resource sharing.
• Possibility of distance learning, which expands access to education.

Despite the significant difficulties associated with the Russian invasion and the forced relocation of the university to the city of Poltava, the Regional Center continues its activities, demonstrating resilience and commitment to its mission. Further development and adaptation to the new realities, as well as leveraging the potential for cooperation with the parent university, can contribute to strengthening its role as a key center of vocational education in Ukraine.

Cooperation:

Our educational institution cooperates closely with the State Institution “Luhansk Taras Shevchenko National University” regarding internships for university students, participation in career guidance, educational, and cultural and educational events and projects.

To date, there has been no cooperation with foreign educational institutions.

We consider our international cooperation in the development of distance vocational education in combination with the deepening of digital technologies to be appropriate.