The new center will train specialists who are currently in high demand in the labor market.
The Training and Practical Center for Modern Vocational Education was established at the Zaporizhzhia Polytechnic Center. Here, specialists in the fields of instrumentation and control systems (locksmiths of measuring and automation equipment) will be trained.
Volodymyr Polukhin, Director of the Zaporizhzhia Polytechnic Center for Vocational Education, said that the new center focuses on preparing exactly the kind of professionals currently sought after in the job market.
"The need for such a center arose after we studied the labor market and consulted with Zaporizhstal and other enterprises within the Metinvest Group to meet the demand for these specialists. We analyzed the employment opportunities for students and formed a group. This group will have an integrated program: our graduates will acquire skills in both electrical installation and instrumentation and automation equipment locksmithing As a result, they will have broader career options and more employment opportunities. Such specialists will definitely be in demand," noted Volodymyr POLUKHIN.
Zaporizhstal steelworks, which collaborates with the Polytechnic Center and is ready to employ more than half of the young specialists graduating annually, played a key role in the creation of this center.
"Each year, we provide placements for industrial internships and are prepared to hire more than 50% of the graduates at Zaporizhstal and other Metinvest enterprises in Zaporizhzhia because there is high demand for such professions, including crane operators, electricians, and maintenance locksmiths. Today, it is especially important not only to modernize the material base but also to update training programs and actively implement dual education. This helps young people adapt more easily and comfortably to the workplace and grow in their professions," shared Serhii KOIPYSH, Head of the Recruitment, Staffing, and Personnel Development Department at Zaporizhstal.
The establishment of the center became possible thanks to the joint efforts of the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, Zaporizhzhia Regional State Administration, and the City Council.
The official presentation of the center was attended by Dmytro Zavgorodnii, Deputy Minister of Education and Science of Ukraine for Digital Development, Digital Transformations, and Digitalization.
"In 2024, we renewed the program to upgrade the equipment in vocational education workshops, giving it new momentum. I hope that the opening of this center marks the beginning of further development, and we will see many more examples of modern workshops and modern equipment, both in vocational and professional pre-higher education institutions. It will make learning more interesting and accessible for students, making these professions more popular and inspiring other educational institutions to follow this example," said Dmytro ZAVGORODNII.
Zaporizhstal representatives also shared plans for another similar educational project.
"Today, another highly important and scarce profession in the region is that of a welder. We hope that already this year we will open a modern center for training welders. We are ready to take part in this project, and I am confident that through joint efforts and partnerships, we will make the vocational education system in the region more modern and attractive to young people," said Serhii Koipysh.
Currently, students are already being trained at the new center for locksmiths of measuring and automation equipment The center offers initial training, retraining, advanced training, and internships. Special attention is given to the training of internally displaced persons (IDPs), combatants, and war veterans.
