Guidance-related projects

Since 2014, following the adoption of the Youth guarantee, the public employment service (ADEM) and the National Youth Service (Service national de la jeunesse, SNJ) on behalf of the Ministry of Education, Children and Youth have been implementing guidance-related projects, many of which were part-funded by the European Social Fund (ESF) and the Erasmus+ programme.

1. The Act! Jeunes project, offered an alternative programme of vocational training using, among others, theatre approaches to help young people not in education, employment or training (NEETs) develop their social and behavioural skills and find their talent. The initial target group was switched from NEETs to young people at risk of dropout and the programme implemented in lower classes of general secondary education and the preparatory track.
2. The Level up - build up your life initiative, launched in November 2015, to familiarise NEETs aged 16 to 29 with the construction sector and related career opportunities, supporting them in developing their personal plans and projects.
3. Job Shadowing (Schnupperstagen): Since 2017, young people who are uncertain about which career path to pursue, can do short-term placements (max 4 weeks) in companies or organisations offer firsthand insight into specific professions.
4. Your potential for your job project, ESF part-funded, was run in 2015-16 and targeted young people aged 16 to 30 seeking a job or a training. The project aimed to help clarify their aspirations, develop self-esteem and teach how to present themselves. It involved workshops and individual sessions. The project continued under the title Explore your potential in 2019, part-funded by Erasmus+ and the Ministry of Education.
5. The Skillpass project (2018-19), part-funded by the ESF, was based on training in the form of a serious game, through which young learners self-evaluated their competences, established a digital competence map, and had it validated by professionals. 300 adolescents took part.
6. In 2018, SNJ started a project, Training path (Parcours formation) empowerment. The project addressed young people between 16 and 25 who did not find an apprenticeship contract or who were inactive and wanted to set up a personal and professional project. It offered a 10-week training including theoretical modules and practical workshops targeted at developing trainees' social, technical, organisational and creative skills. In 2018, there were two sessions, the first with 12 participants and the second with 16.

Other projects designed to support young people aged 15 to 30 transitioning into the workforce existed already before the adoption of the Youth guarantee in 2014 and continue to this day. These initiatives aim to help youth discover their strengths, build confidence, and define their career paths. Key programmes include:

1. Voluntary Service (Fräiwëllegendéngscht): Engage in a full-time voluntary project of public interest (abroad or in Luxembourg), allowing young people to gain practical experience and explore potential career paths.
2. Workshops (Atelieren): Participate in creative workshops aimed at rekindling motivation, building self-confidence, and setting personal goals to achieve during the programme.
3. Training Programmes (Formatiounen): These programmes allow enhancing skills through specialised training aligned with personal and professional development needs, facilitating transitions in education or career.

Other stakeholders implemented their projects and initiatives:

1. The Training Institute in the Construction Sector (IFSB) initiated in 2014/15 a Building generation project, part-funded by the ESF. The project informed young people about different occupations, technological developments and job prospects in the construction sector through events, games, competitions among secondary schools. Discovery days and building games continued in 2018, supported by Perspektiv Handwierk.
2. The Chamber of Commerce developed in 2016 the TalentCheck, a competence test focusing on concentration, observation, arithmetic, languages, organisational and other skills. This aims at helping learners choose a suitable apprenticeship based on better insights into their own strengths and weaknesses. Companies can also use the results in their selection processes.
3. The Erasmus+ 120 pictures and 120 trades for orientation project (2015-16) combined information on occupations with language learning, using existing software. It addressed dropouts, and apprentices as well as teachers and trainers who helped young people elaborate personal goals.
4. The Chamber of Employees and the Chamber of Skilled Crafts and Trades launched in 2016 an aptitude test, Basic-Check, focusing on linguistic reflection, spatial representation, digital logic and practical questions. The test analyses the knowledge and skills of fifth grade learners (third year of lower secondary education). It is a guidance tool that helps learners make choices before learning a trade/profession. The result indicates whether candidates meet the conditions required for apprenticeship in the trade they applied for.

Launched in 2017, the EduBoard application allows IVET learners to monitor their learning progression online: required modules, the current status and the remaining modules for successful achievement of the programme. From 2018, the individual results of the final diploma of general secondary education (Bac) are also accessible via the platform. The information is updated biannually, at the end of the class councils. Access to the EduBoard is strictly personal and secure. In 2018 the Ministry of National Education, Children and Youth launched a new platform, Mengschoul, to orient learners towards a suitable secondary programme and/or school. In 2024 EduBoard was replaced by EduGuichet, a new platform that centralizes access to numerous digital services offered to parents and students. Consulting personal documents and completing administrative procedures related to the Luxembourgish education system thus become simpler, more efficient, and more accessible to parents and students.

The law of 20 July 2018 created the Agency for Transition to Independent Living (ATVA), which operates nationally. It targets young people with special needs between the ages of 15 and 29. The agency informs young people, parents and education professionals about the different possibilities for employment, training or occupational activities after the end of compulsory education. It also informs employers who are willing to hire young people with special needs. The Agency commits to following young people for at least two years after they have signed a contract with an employer. It identifies jobs and occupations, for which young people with special needs would be sufficiently trained or could be trained. It introduces employers and internship supervisors to specialised pedagogy in order to provide the best possible support to their interns.