The best young professionals have been determined in the national skills competition of young professionals SkillsLatvia 2019 in 19 different skills categories. For two days, 129 competitors from 34 vocational education institutions took part in an intense competition for medals and the title of the best master.
The most medals in the competition were collected by the students of Liepāja State Technical School (with 6 awards) and the students from Ventspils Technical School with 4 awards. Youth from the vocational education institutions of Kurzeme region received the greatest number of medals in this competition: 14 awards.
The list of winners and educational institutions represented can be found here: https://ej.uz/SkillsLatvia2019rezultati
SkillsLatvia 2019 competitors received awards in such skill competitions as making clothes, design and decoration of display windows, graphic design, administration of computer networks, hairdressing works, cooking, carpentry, mobile robotics and electronics, engineering communications, electric installations, and other skill competitions. The medal-winners demonstrated the best skills and abilities in the opinion of industry professionals and employers.
Ilga Šuplinska, Minister of Education and Science of the Republic of Latvia: “The competition is a successful start for the implementation of professional challenges and ideas of youth, proven also by the performance demonstrated by the competitors. It shows that vocational education in Latvia is in high demand and well recognised among young people.”
Stefan Praschl, Vice-President of WorldSkills International: “Currently, Europe is experiencing a significant lack of professional employees; therefore, our common purpose is to demonstrate how attractive and needed are such professions as a cook, hairdresser, mechanic, and others. SkillsLatvia perfectly shows why it is important to have a vocational education nowadays.”
Compared to the first year, the competition has grown this year. The number of participants has significantly increased: this year, the number of competitors was by 33 more than in the first year, i.e., 129 competitors. At the same time, representation of vocational education institutions has increased by 4, reaching 34 educational institutions in total.
This year, SkillsLatvia 2019 brought together around ten thousand visitors. Participants of the event had the opportunity to try various skills and career activities, for example, try out the interactive games and tests available at the Career Cafe, learn more about the vocational education and career possibilities in Latvia, as well as to observe skills demonstrations.
About SkillsLatvia 2019
SkillsLatvia 2019 is a national skills competition for young professionals organised in Latvia by the SEDA for the third consecutive year. Competition with motto “The doer wins!” praises the skills of young professionals and demonstrates cooperation between vocational education institutions and the labour market.
More information on SkillsLatvia 2019 competition, its participants and represented professional skills, as well as the event schedule and visitor times are available on the SEDA website: www.viaa.gov.lv/skillslatvia, while the news about the competition are available on SkillsLatvia page on Facebook. The competition takes place within the framework of the project Career Support at General and Vocational Education Institutions, which is co-financed by the European Social Fund.