National Initiatives Concerning the Career Guidance/Information/Vocational Counselling - Latvia

Source: Latvian National Observatory

Vocational Guidance and Counselling

• Agency for Vocational Education Development Programmes

• Career Counselling Centre

Agency for Vocational Education Development Programmes

In the year 2000, the Agency for Vocational Education Development Programmes (an enterprise established by the Ministry of Education and Science) opened the Latvian National Resource Centre for Vocational Guidance (NRCVG). The NRCVG co-operates with similar organisations in Europe, together forming the Euroguidance Network.

The objectives of the NRCVG include:

• creation of information materials (publications, data bases, web pages) for use by vocational guidance practitioners and end-beneficiaries.
• participation in the international project ESTIA in the framework of the Leonardo da Vinci programme. ESTIA is a uniform data base on the internet that includes information on the education system, training providers, labour market, and professions of each participating country that contains links to relevant sites on each theme. The Latvian NRCG is responsible for the development and up-dating of information on Latvia within the ESTIA project, as well as for the dissemination of information about the web site in Latvia.
• organisation, participation and dissemination of information at national and European education fairs, information events, seminars and conferences, in order to promote the development of the European dimension in education and training.
• support for the upgrading of training for vocational guidance practitioners, and the promotion of contacts among guidance practitioners in Europe.

In June of 2001 the NRCVG released a CD-ROM publication titled “Meet the World of Training and Employment”. It includes information on the Latvian education system and 12 economic sectors.

Career Counselling Centre

The public non-profit organisation “Career Counselling Centre” has been in operation for 13 years now. It is an organisation under the supervision of the Ministry of Welfare that provides psychological help in the choice of education and career. The Centre is located in Riga and it has branches in Daugavpils, Liepaja, Livani, Rezekne, Valmiera and Gulbene.

In the year 2000, 17,284 people have received consultations, among them 11,294 pupils of senior forms, 3,513 unemployed persons (46% by request of the SES), 389 students of vocational schools and 389 students of higher education establishments, 631 unemployed job-seekers who were not registered with the SES, 983 employed persons and 155 parents of school children. As compared with the previous year, the number of persons consulted has increased by 7%.

Clients of the Centre can receive the following services:

• individual and group consultations on issues of career and training decisions and professional aptitude;
• individual consultations on job search issues;
• training seminars for young people and adults on career development and job search issues;
• informative consultations on training opportunities in Latvia and abroad.

The demand for the centre’s services far outreaches the centre’s capacity. In order to expand the centre’s activities within the territory of Latvia and to ensure equal access to the entire population, branch offices must be opened in more regions.

In the year 2000, 17,940 unemployed persons participated in Job-seekers Club (JC) activities organised by the SES. Persons who participated in group activities after having signed a contract on participation in the JC were attended by 11,231 unemployed, which was 1,594 more than in the last year.

Target group activities were attended by 8,345 unemployed, the state language was learned by 1,849, seminars and lectures were attended by 4,148, individual consultations were received by 2,834 persons, and individual action plan was developed for 17,340 unemployed.

The demand for JC activities in 2000 exceeded the SES capacity for involving unemployed persons, as JC activities were requested by 20,335 persons who registered their unemployed status in 2000, but only 17,940 were accepted.

At the end of 2000, 48 firms (43 in 1999) providing labour market insertion services were registered with the SES. According to information provided by the SES, 19,534 job seekers used these services in the year 2000.

However, it is not possible to determine the exact number of persons who use the services of private firms, because internet employment exchanges are becoming more and more popular. These internet sites also publicise information on formal and non-formal training opportunities.

On the whole, both SES and Career Counselling Centre data show that the demand for vocational guidance and counselling services is ever increasing. As the world is changing rapidly, people more often need consultants who can help them not to get lost in the jungle of available information and to choose what is best for them.

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