Presentation at CUBCCE Conference 2019, Budapest

1. UBC BULGARIA: TWO
NATIONAL PROGRAMS
TARGETING SMART
SPECIALIZATION, CLUSTERS
AND BRAIN DRAIN
ANNA-MARIE VILAMOVSKA, PH.D.
CUBCCE, Budapest, Dec 5 – 6, 2019

2. BG UBC SMART SPECIALIZATION
TRACK
“The IT Industry Teaches”
NP
• Smart Specialization & Clusters
• Led by MoE & IT & BPO Sector
Associations
• Phase 2 NEP, following 2016 “NP
Profession Software Developer”
• Involving company technical staff,
lecturers/teachers and students
• Focused on 1st to 12th school grade
“Success Is In Bulgaria” NP
• Smart Specialization and Brain Drain
• Initially led by 1 outsourcing company & 1
university, since expanded nationally
• Involving company HR & technical staff,
university leadership & lecturers, student
organizations and public personalities
• Focused on university students and high-
school graduates

3. THE IT INDUSTRY TEACHES NP
T1: Short Seminars
• Target: 1 – 10th grade students,
all schools
• Specialized subjects (as
computer modelling) as well as
ICT as horizontal base for all
subjects, 2 hr/yr
• IT technical staff enter the
classroom as “assistant
teachers”
• MoE finances teacher salaries
• Companies cover staff time and
needed resources
• Aim: 500 seminars in SY 19/20
T2: Year-Long Classes
• Target: 8 – 12 grade students
in specialized technical
schools
• “AA” teacher format co-
developed with primary
subject teacher
• 19 school classes / yr.
• Universities help developing
specific curriculum aspects
• Aim: 900 hrs taught by IT
professionals
T3: Teacher Training
• Target: 8 – 12 grade teachers
in specialized technical
schools
• 3.1 – teacher inclusion in
company trainings and
company residency
(summer) up to 40 hrs
• 3.2. – teacher-company
bespoke project development
- to be implemented in class
afterwards
• MoE covers teacher time and
transport costs
• Aim: 250 teacher graduated

4. THE IT INDUSTRY TEACHES NP’S
ORIGIN – THE 2016 “PROFESSION
JUNIOR DEVELOPER” NP AND ITS
CHALLENGES

5. CURRENT PROGRAM STATUS
• Started on Oct 1, 2019 – Y1
• 51 schools and 23 companies enrolled in summer 2019, numbers rising
• Dedicated platform developed as interface to help “partner search and map” for
schools and companies
• IT & BPO Associations act as “candidate company filterers”
• 500,000 euro set by MoE for this program, matched by IT & BPO Association
Members
• Main risks - 1: Geographic unbalance despite specific efforts
• Main risks – 2: School and company capacity to mix and match

6. SUCCESS IS IN BULGARIA
NP
• Started with a survey of 17 to 25
years-olds on the question of
education and life/career success
• Motto: Your Future is Here! Success
is in Bulgaria.
• Communication-conscious, holistic
campaign addressing SS & clusters,
university modernization and brain
drain
• Focus: Career Mapping, Mentoring
and Job And Profession Search Intro
• Positions universities as career
platforms

7. SUCCESS IS IN BULGARIA NP
Achievements
• Generated a platform for joint
youth engagement BU, non-
commercial
• Reaching and connecting
youth in distant municipalities
• Generates an accessible
alternative to media image of
active economic
opportunities linked to
universities – for youth and in
general
Risks
• Capacity to measure direct
program impact (program
sustainability)
• Need to stem company HR
push and to encourage
universities ongoing active
engagement
• Need to update content
continuously and add on
educational and career
opportunities sections

8. THANK YOU
AND LET’S KEEP
INNOVATING TOGETHER!
Anna-Marie Vilamovska, Ph.D.
amv@ideasdriver.com