28.05.2021

WHICH PROFESSION IS THE MOST DESIRED IN OUR COUNTRY

"Security guard" continues to be among the most desired professions in our country, there is an increased interest in 2021 in the field of "Plant and Animal Husbandry", according to data from the National Agency for Vocational Education and Training /NAVET/.

The data from the information system of NAVET show that for the first months of 2021 (from January 1 until now) the most popular professions are in the professional fields "Motor vehicles, ships and aircraft", "Plant and animal husbandry", "Computer sciences "," Hairdressing and cosmetic services "and" Security ". This was announced in an interview with BTA by the chairman of NAVET eng. Mariana Pavlova.

Compared to the same period in 2020, there is a decrease in the number of trained by about 15%. The number of trainees in the field of "Plant and Animal Husbandry" has increased almost 4 times. According to Pavlova, the data are intermediate and the agency cannot commit to specific conclusions at this stage.

In the past 2020, 79,809 people have been trained in licensed Vocational Training Centers, and slightly more than one-fifth (22 percent) are trainees in professions and specialties of the professional field "Motor vehicles, ships and aircraft".

The most desired professions are "Security Guard", "Lifting Equipment Installer", "Transport Equipment Installer", "Programmer" and "Marketing Associate".

"Trends in recent years have been maintained, and there is interest in conducting professional training also in the field of hospitality, restaurants and catering, hairdressing and cosmetic services, as well as plant and animal husbandry," Pavlova said.

According to the chairman of NAVET, the crisis has not changed the preferred professional areas. They remain the same compared to previous years. "It can be argued that the trainees in the centers make choices that are in line with their individual desires rather than the current situation on the labor market," Pavlova added.

Deficits of people with secondary education and a surplus of human resources with higher and primary education are expected on the labor market.

NAVET experts also cite reports on the labor market of the Ministry of Labor and Social Policy. According to the report "Medium-term and long-term forecasts for the development of the labor market in Bulgaria, employment and labor market imbalances, labor supply factors (2008-2034)", there are significant structural deficits of people in the labor market and are expected. with secondary education and structural surplus of human resources with higher and primary and lower education.

According to the brief analysis of the labor market as of March 2021, published on the MLSP website, the largest share of job vacancies in the real economy is declared in the manufacturing industry (26.7 percent), followed by hotels and restaurants (13, 9 per cent), trade, repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles (10.5 per cent), government (9.5 per cent), agriculture, forestry and fisheries (9.1 per cent) and administrative and support service activities (6 ,3 percent).

The system of vocational education and training provides qualified specialists for many of these areas, so that those who would like to change their professional field can do so by joining vocational training, said Eng. Mariana Pavlova. According to the expert, the system provides flexibility - people can undergo vocational training in part of the profession and enter the labor market in a relatively short time.

Employers prefer the so-called "soft skills" to professional ones, but Bulgaria remains one of the last places to create such skills.

Another point on which different stakeholders agree is that the transition between different positions and professions would be smoother if people have a set of key competencies that help them change, said Mariana Pavlova. She pointed out that a number of studies at European level show that employers prefer the so-called "soft skills" to professional ones, which can be acquired in the process of work. On the other hand, Bulgaria ranks 26th (out of a total of 31 systems) in terms of skills creation, according to the European Skills Index, a complex indicator for measuring the effectiveness and comparison of skills systems in different countries, monitored by the European Center for Development of vocational training Cedefop.

According to the chairman of NAVET, this is the reason to take action to promote key competencies and their inclusion in the curriculum in vocational training. These are adaptability, flexibility, skills for working under pressure, digital competencies, etc., which are extremely important at every stage of individual career management, regardless of age and education of people.

In recent years, the share of trainings that are funded at the request of the employer is high, and in 2020 such trainings are 21.9 percent of all trainings conducted in the centers. Mariana Pavlova said that the role of employers in the system of vocational education and training is extremely important, because, on the one hand, they state exactly their needs for staff training, and on the other hand they trust NAVET for quality assurance in individual VTC in terms of facilities, teachers, compliance with state educational standards.

Last but not least, by organizing and financing trainings for their employees, employers create loyalty and commitment in them, which gives results in the medium and long term, said the chairman of NAVET.