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Higher education student and staff mobility projec..
Higher education student and staff mobility project
Start date: Jun 1, 2014,
End date: May 31, 2016
PROJECT
FINISHED
Martinique is an outermost region of Europe.
Each year, over a thousand young adults receive a Vocational Training Certificate (BTS). One third of them pursue a higher professional degree but most of them try to find a job right away. The job market in Martinique has unfortunately little to offer to young graduates with limited or no job experience, as the unemployment rate is of approximately 21%, of which 60% is under 25. Providing opportunities of internships abroad to young graduates, will lead to increase their employability.
Setting up a consortium is a project that will enable to coordinate mobility activities of all higher studies institutions in Martinique in order to increase both the quality and the quantity of trainings/internships abroad offered to students, graduates, faculty and administrative staff.
This project aims to enhance the professional skills of young graduates and open up job opportunities in Martinique, in Europe and beyond. Indeed, a good grasp on a foreign language, an open mind and work experience in a foreign country will be assets that will enable them either to resume their studies or find a job. Beyond developing their human capital, the expected outcome would be a successful integration into the workplace.
In parallel, faculty members and administrative staff will undertake short internships, either in vocational training institutes or companies in the host countries. The period spent within the company or the training institute will contribute to their development and an update of competencies of faculty and administrative staff, and will provide a better understanding of the targeted companies.
Several partners are involved in the project: school inspectors, vocational high schools, the Regional Council and the international department of the Employment Agency of Martinique.
The Regional Council and the Employment Agency are both partners of the project, since it is part of a professional training programme. The Regional Council is very committed to the idea of international mobility for students, and every year it offers financial support to schools involved in exchanges abroad. Furthermore, adult training is part of the mandate of the Regional Council. The Employment Agency is particularly sensitive to international relations and would be able to provide support to our students.
Thanks to partnership with well-known and well-established local agencies, we can guarantee that the internships and accommodation provided to our students are in keeping with our quality requirements. They will also facilitate monitoring and follow-up during the period of internship.
Cooperation between partners will require a highly organized communication strategy involving: meetings, videoconferences, phone calls, e-mails, social media and an online document-sharing platform. The division of labour among partners and the frequency of meetings shall be determined at the outset.
The consortium, which will bring together institutions from Martinique that holds an Erasmus + Charter, is sustained by terms of reference to structure its functioning, a steering committee, a decision-making board, a division of roles, responsibilities and burdens approved by the various partners.
There are many expected outcomes: improvement of both linguistic and professional skills, greater employability, and personal development, which facilitates integration into the workplace.
It is also expected that the trainees will gain a greater awareness of their European citizenship, and more broadly will be able to understand what the concept of “citizen of the world” means.
In the long run, this project must contribute to improve employability of young Martinicans and accord due recognition to their training. At a more general level, this improvement will be a source of social cohesion.