Nearly 300 schoolchildren from communities across the Sumy region participated in the career guidance program “Building the Community of the Future Together,” which was held in June by Sumy National Agrarian University. The event was one of the practical stages in the implementation of a national pilot project on career guidance for children and adolescents in the Sumy region and brought young people together around the idea of making an informed choice about their future careers.
Participants included students from the Sumy City and Krasnopil territorial communities, students from the Sumy Regional Council’s Municipal Institution “Regional Center for Extracurricular Education and Work with Gifted Youth,” as well as students from the Sumy National Agrarian University’s academic departments.
The project was implemented as part of the Sumy Regional Military Administration’s regional plan to launch a national pilot project on career guidance for children and adolescents for 2026–2027. Its goal is to help young people make informed career choices and familiarize them with current educational opportunities and the needs of the labor market.
The school’s program had a practical focus. All classes were held in the university’s equipped shelters. The students worked in modern laboratories, familiarized themselves with the latest equipment, completed hands-on assignments, and interacted with teachers.
Modules in the fields of agriculture, natural sciences, engineering, economics, and law were prepared for the participants. Under the guidance of instructors, they explored production processes, worked with modern equipment, solved practical case studies, and learned about the application of digital technologies in various fields. This format helped the students better understand their own abilities, interests, and career prospects.
A separate component of the program was the SNAU Summer School for Gifted Youth, organized jointly with the Regional Center for Extracurricular Education and Work with Talented Youth, which coordinates the activities of the Sumy Regional Branch of the Junior Academy of Sciences of Ukraine. Participants worked in the fields of physics and mathematics, chemistry and biology, and history and linguistics, carried out research tasks, and developed their own mini-projects.
At the end of each session, the students presented the results of their work, and all participants in the career guidance program received certificates.
Ihor Kovalenko, Rector of Sumy National Agrarian University, emphasized that career guidance is one of the university’s top priorities.
“The national pilot program for the career guidance system is an investment in the future of our children and communities. The university’s mission is not only to train qualified specialists but also to help young people make informed career choices while still in school. We strive to ensure that every participant in this project not only learns about different fields of study but also has the opportunity to try their hand at various areas, discover their own abilities, and understand which profession truly aligns with their calling. It is precisely this kind of practical experience that helps them make responsible choices and, at the same time, contributes to building the human resource potential of our communities,” noted Ihor Kovalenko.
The career guidance school “Building the Community of the Future Together” has become yet another example of how collaboration between the university, government agencies, and educators helps young people gain practical experience, decides on a future profession, and take the first step toward a successful career.
