Bulgaria: VET supports career development – the Small stories campaign

With this campaign, NAVET aimed to attract the interest of citizens and employers around opportunities for successful professional development provided by VET, and to promote the activities of licensed Centres for Vocational Training (CVTs) in their role as leading institutions in Bulgaria’s (adult) VET system.

Through the campaign, inspirational stories related to VET were collected by citizens, social partners, VET providers, employers, and PES regional structures. Around 70 stories were submitted with topics ranging from choosing a new career, growing from a learner into a trainer, pursuing hobbies and passions, and accomplishing life fulfilment.

One of the national television channels turned five of the stories into short films, which premiered at the national conference ‘VET and career development – small stories of big success’. The two films played during the conference also revealed an extremely important aspect of vocational training: its link to all other forms of education and qualifications, and its role as a step towards a possible transition to higher education or to a teaching activity. At the event, the most inspiring stories received awards, and VET Ambassadors were invited to participate in a discussion about the challenges of VET for adults.

During the discussion, three ambassadors presented their positions on several key issues, such as strengths and weaknesses of VET in the country, the role of the State in successfully preparing the population for careers, assessment and validation of skills and competences, motivation and opportunities for learners, and the future trends in qualification supply. In addition, they shared exciting moments from their personal career development journeys, which were made possible precisely because they chose VET.

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 Small stories ebook (in Bulgarian only)