“Today we are taking a step forward to improve the quality of practical teaching within companies as part of the studies at the Faculty of Agriculture in Shtip. Through these changes, we expect companies to be satisfied with the skills and competencies acquired by students during their studies, ” said Prof. Dr. Emilija Arsov, Dean of the Faculty of Agriculture at “Goce Delchev” University (UGD), at the opening of the two-day workshop “Development of a Mentoring Programme for Higher Education in Agriculture“.
“If we discuss the success of a higher education institution, it should be measured by the number and quick employability of the students after their graduation,” says consultant Natasha Janevska. She further explains that this process must be guided by what the employers demand from the students. Employers seek academic experience, work experience in the form of practical work within a company, but also personal life experience including the student’s perspectives, competencies, assessments, autonomy, and responsibility. All of these requirements are translated into learning outcomes.
The training was attended by mentors from UGD, representatives from the Career and Development Center of UGD, as well as mentors from some of the companies that expressed interest in participating in the development of the program. These include: Zivino-Prom, AgFutura Technologies, Agroprodukt, Imako Vino Winery, MIK Sveti Nikole, Agria Group Veles, Network of Agricultural Cooperatives. The training was conducted by the consultants involved in the development of the programme, namely Natasha Janevska, Sonja Ristovska and Ardiana Isahi Paloshi.
This training was held within the activity ” Development of a Mentoring Programme for Higher Education in Agriculture “, financially supported by the Government of Switzerland through the project “Education for Employment in North Macedonia” (E4E @mk) and the Increasing Market Employability Programme.
