The Ser Pro project is designed to help improve the quality of young people's education and training. It is aimed at students who wish to pursue vocational upper secondary programmes and obtain a professional qualification by the end of their courses.
It seeks to improve the quality of education and training in Portugal, improve students' academic performance, and reduce the shortage of technical experts in industries.
The Ser Pro project aims to bring working life and education together by offering educational roadmaps that are more aligned with the short-term goals of many students. Ser Pro will enable students to obtain the qualifications they need to make the transition from student to professional with higher chances of securing a job.
Motivation
With compulsory education until the age of 18, new opportunities have been created for many young people, who previously would not have been able to continue their studies. It is extremely important that all young people have equal opportunities to further their education, live a fulfilling life and feel fully integrated in society.
This new framework, however, has also created new hiring challenges for companies. On the one hand, society has become increasingly demanding, and companies no longer wish to hire low-performance workers; on the other hand, many students that remain in school up to the age of 18 no longer accept an education that does not provide professional training and is out of touch with the professional world.
The problem concerning the transition from universal (compulsory) education to further education or to the labour market is being addressed by all European countries, especially by those where vocational training is less developed, and education is compulsory until the age of 18. In Portugal, compulsory education was extended to the age of 18 in 2012, a few years after vocational training became widespread in almost every school. However, the challenge of aligning vocational training with real work opportunities in each region remains, as well as strong need for harmonisation and alignment between the expectations and necessities of both schools and companies.
Goals
By bringing schools and companies closer, the Ser Pro project will contribute to the growth of professional training. Companies will collaborate with schools in developing suitable courses, increasing the range of paths on offer in upper secondary education.
Since there is not a widespread tradition of regular interaction between schools, companies and other institutions in Portugal, this programme is designed to foster synergies targeted at building a better future for young people, encompassing the following organisations:
- SCHOOLS have obvious difficulties in identifying the most relevant business areas and finding educators that have sufficient experience and expertise in professional working practices.
- COMPANIES are aware of their recruitment challenges, but do not know where to find the right intermediaries within the educational system.
- MUNICIPALITIES are aware of their regional needs and shortages but find it difficult to create more qualified jobs and to support the development of local companies due to the lack of efficient tools and practices. They feel partly responsible for school failure and dropout rates, as well as for the resulting social problems; they are willing to intervene at an early stage but lack the means to do so without going against the strategies followed by local schools and companies.
The intention of the Ser Pro project is to join forces in order to develop vocational courses that will not only tackle school dropouts and the shortage of technical experts in industries, but also build a better future for young people and allow them to contribute to the development of their region.
Young people often feel that school is misaligned with their personal lives and goals. This makes school integration more difficult: students often face academic failure or drop out of school without any qualifications, paving the way to future social problems.
The Ser Pro project is designed to help young people who wish to gain access to the world of work while pursuing their studies.
Methodology
The Ser Pro project seeks to support the creation of structured, robust partnerships between schools, municipalities and companies. The goal is to provide a wider curriculum for upper secondary vocational education, which will comprise a stronger presence of companies in schools, on-the-job training opportunities and the additional collaboration of Polytechnic Institutes.
In order to be able to provide level 4 certifications (secondary school leaving certificates), schools must adjust their curricular structure and syllabus to the educational offers, in close collaboration with local companies. Furthermore, schools will provide additional support for students who wish to pursue higher education. Companies must have some level of involvement in designing the curriculum, advising schools on the necessary technical training, creating opportunities for the students to come into closer contact with the technical specificities of each course and providing pupils with on-the-job learning experiences. The municipalities shall provide institutional support to sustain the relationships between schools and companies, as well as help target the most suited areas for development and companies that are best tailored to take on these partnerships.
The Ser Pro project will be subject to regular evaluation by external entities, to ensure that all parties involved reach the agreed milestones.
School Year 2023/2024
Ser Pro, a program geared towards students who are finishing middle school and starting high school, started in September 2019.
Ser Pro is led by a coordination team, headed by Filipa Oliveira in an interim capacity, and supported by small teams of consultants and experts who contribute to its development and implementation.
In the 2023/2024 school year, the Ser Pro program had 17 active courses across 15 educational institutions (groups of school and/or professional schools) in different regions of mainland Portugal and involving 249 students, 88 partners (companies and other institutions), 11 municipalities and 10 higher education establishments. The 17 courses are spread over 10 areas of education and training, including three new areas: Farming and Animal Production, Metallurgy and Metalworking, and Electricity and Energy.
Since its origin in 2019, the Ser Pro program has included many areas of education and learning, predominantly offering courses in Tourism and Leisure, Health, Electronics and Automation and Hospitality and Catering.