I have recently been successful in securing the role of EuroApprentice with the Erasmus+ National Agency in the UK, and tasked with raising awareness of Erasmus+ opportunities in the vocational education and training (VET) sector.

I applied as a participant who has previously been on a mobility project, working in another European Country through the Erasmus + Programme. I was lucky enough to be selected as one of the final 4 successful applicants in the UK and I am delighted to have been given this opportunity to share my experiences and encourage others to go ahead and gain the experience that I have.

"The role of a EuroApprentice is to enhance the visibility of the Erasmus+ programme in their home country and motivate other apprentices, enterprises and VET providers to participate in the programme by sharing their own experience of learning abroad and its benefit for personal and professional development.
EuroApprentices are members of a network of Erasmus+ funded apprentices selected by Erasmus+ National Agencies in Austria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Germany and Italy."
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I was able to get involved with this as I completed a mobility in Seville, Spain in March 2017, where I worked in the Business Admin industry, working in an office for 3 weeks. The mobility itself has opened many opportunities for me both personally and professionally - enabling me to continue onto this new programme as well as being able to progress at work, whilst attaining new personal and professional skills.

My role as a EuroApprentice is to enhance the visibility of the Erasmus+ programme and motivate other apprentices, enterprises and VET providers to participate in the programme by illustrating my own experience of learning abroad and its benefit for personal and professional development.
The responsibilities I have under this role are to:

• Complete 1 - 4 social media engagement activities: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter etc.
• Complete 1 - 2 presentations / event engagement activities

I was also privileged enough to attend a funded EuroApprentice Network Meeting in Vienna, Austria from 28th - 30th May 2018. There, I met with other EuroApprentices from different countries in the EU, including: Spain, Germany, Czech Republic, Italy, Malta, Spain and many others.
During my stay I was able to do sightseeing activities, I had a tour of the city and I was also lucky enough to meet and greet the Austrian President, Alexander Van der Bellen. I also participated in Social Media, Video Making, Project Planning and Presentation Skills Activities.
Overall, the whole EuroApprentice journey so far has been overwhelming and I am excited for what is to come in the future. I would recommend this programme to anyone spontaneous, looking to gain experience, looking to travel or looking to develop themselves.

Gecko Programmes is going to host the TeBeVAT [Validation of informal learning in the professional field of event technicians] project closure event in Wolverhampton on the 5th July 2018.

We will not try to explain “TeBeVAT” in German, but suffice to say the project is about confirming the competence of sound engineers across Europe. These professionals are famous for their ability and also for their lack of qualifications. There are wonderful stories of how people came to be sound engineers.  How many you ask? One ,two..One..One, Two…One

The event will feature presentations on the tools developed by the project, and how they can be used in the entertainment technology industry.

TeBeVAT is a pilot study about identification, recognition, assessment and validation of informal and non-formal competences and skills for occupations within the entertainment technology industry. 

EVENT PROGRAMME
VENUE: 101.8 WCR FM | Newhampton Art Centre | Newhampton Road East | Wolverhampton | WV1 4AP,  Get directions, http://wcrfm.com/
 
10:00 AM        Opening/Get-together at WCR FM Studios – coffee/tea/finger buffet
10:30 AM        Greetings to the meeting and the event (Gecko Programmes)
10:35 AM        Presentation of the TeBeVAT-Recognition Process and the Lifelong-Learning-Document-Tool                                   (Randell Greenlee - VPLT, Germany)
10:45 AM        Candidate/Mentor role play Life-Long-Learning-Document-Tool candidate/Randell Greenlee (VPLT,                             Germany)
11:30 AM        Coffee break
11:45 AM        Presentation of the TeBeVAT-Recognition Process: Assessment (Chris van Goethem  - STEPP,                                       Belgium)
12:00 PM         Begin role play Candidate/Assessor = Assessment
12:30PM          Presentation of the TeBeVAT-SLOM = Semantic Open Learner Model (Chris van Goethem - STEPP,                               Belgium / Randell Greenlee - VPLT, Germany)
12:45 PM         Open Discussion – Chris van Goethem  - STEPP, Belgium / Randell Greenlee - VPLT, Germany)
13:00 PM         End of Event/Get-together – coffee/tea/finger buffet

We invite anyone operating within the creative industry, education, events management/entertainment technology industry to come along to the event. This will be a great opportunity to find out more about recognition of prior learning within the industry and network with recognised names  in the events management/sound technology sector from Germany, Belgium, Italy, Austria and Netherlands.
Drinks and refreshments will be provided. Please confirm attendance by emailing us at [email protected]  or at 01902 837 416

ABOUT THE DELEGATES
BFM, Germany
The Business Management Research Center for questions of the SME sector (BF / M) at the University of Bayreuth is a non-profit association which was founded in 1979 and has set itself the goal of science and industry to interlock with each other by economic research results in business be transferred and can be held empirical studies. The main focus is clearly on small and medium enterprises.
STEPP, Belgium
STEPP is the professional association of producers, designers and technicians of the arts and event sector. The association represents stage technicians, scenographers, producers and architects throughout the entire cultural spectrum.
STUDIO CENTRO VENETO, Italy
Established in 1968, the ‚Atelier Studio Centro Veneto‘ is an Italian organisation that offers specialized services in Consulting, Research and Education institutions, entrepreneurs and professionals. Since 1983 they’ve worked on the theme of Intergenerational Transfer and have since developed a wide range of tools to better address the process.
SV-wtu, Austria
The SV-wtu event technology company is an Austrian organisation, which provides premium-class event services. The company consists of a team of four, specialising in setting up events such as galas, balls, concerts, theatres and company parties.
VPLT, Germany
The VPLT is a technical orientated industrial association. Its members are developers, manufacturers, distributors, installers, services and production-companies of the media and event-technology-industry.
...[osat, Netherlands
OSAT stands for Overleg Scholing Arbeidsmarkt Theatertechniek. It was founded in 2000 and coordinates the consultation between the field of work and the stage education.

For further details on the TeBeVAT project, please visit the project website at: ​https://tebevat.eu/

 Are you:

• an entrepreneur,
• a trainer/teacher involved in entrepreneurial education,
• a vocational counsellor,
• an adult learner,
• a young business or
• working for a Chamber of Commerce / Job Centre / employment agency / business incubator?

We require your feedback for the design of an innovative training pathway for disadvantaged adult learners who are looking to start-up a business.

The focus group is part of a larger project (YouBrand) which will help disadvantaged adult learners move into self-employment. The final training materials will be freely accessible to anyone interested in using our methodology (given appropriate credentials are given!).  The aim of the study is to gather opinions on the methodology of YouBrand, its effectiveness, sustainable development and its adaptation to the public policies.

The methodology proposed by the YouBrand project aims to define a guided and homogeneous learning process that, through 6 steps (training modules), leads the aspiring startuppers towards the definition of their business idea, so that they can come to the market more aware and equipped to withstand the impact of external factors which can affect a new business.

If you are interested, we are inviting you to have a look at the YouBrand methodology draft below, and drop us an email at [email protected] to learn more about the time and location of the focus group. Altrnatively, you can ring us on 01902 837 416.