Team members: Filip Mladenovski | Jovana Gjorgjioska | Dragana Stojanovska

General rate of unemployment: 30.6%

0102030405060708090

Unemployment by level of education - %

0 20 40 60

15-19

20-24

25-29

30-34

35-39

40-44

45-49

50-54

55-59

60-64

Unemployed by age - in thousands

Average age of respondents: 23.8 years old

0 20 40

Skopje

Bitola

Kumanovo

Prilep

Stip

Veles

Other

City

0 10 20 30 40 50

Undergraduate …Postgraduatestudent

UnemployedPart time employeeFull time employee

Occupation

0

5

10

15

20

25Formal education

The internships have lost their value due to the fact that they do not focus

on providing experience.76% agree

0 10 20 30 40

Educational system

Financial crisis

Political situation

Weak labor laws

Inability of Macedonian companies to produce workplaces

Other

Reasons for high unemployment according to the youth

The educational system is different from what companies want.

95% agree

Companies require previous experience in

order to give a job, but companies are reluctant to

give this experience to students and recent

graduates.93% agree

The Bureau of Labor does not serve it’s purpose and does not help young people get employed. 89%

There are many opportunities for young people to find work in Macedonia. 10%

Career centers at Macedonian Universities are almost non-existent. 78%

The current internship system is unfair and exploitative towards young people. 73%

‘Students apply for postgraduate studies because they can’t find a job after graduation.’

‘Short term jobs prevail on the job market, with a great degree of uncertainty for a stable career path for arts and humanities

professionals.’

‘Students are forced to work virtually for free in the first two years after starting a career.’

Social Sciences students

Arts and Humanities

students

Technical Sciences students

Professors

Company representative

NGO representative

‘Students need to diversify themselves and to invest in their formal and non-formal education

before looking for a job.’

‘Students need to be stimulated into seeking other, more perspective career paths; Educational system is not compatible with the demand side of

the job market.’

‘Students from other cities don’t use the opportunities in their home towns and flock to Skopje, leading to

overpopulation in Skopje University and greater competition for fewer workplaces.’

With the current rate of unemployment among young people, the diminishing number of new work

places, aging population and increasing immigration, it is crucial to keep the Macedonian

youth in the country and employed.

If you were given the chance, would you leave Macedonia in search of better employment?

Yes (85%)

No (15%)

So we decided, that instead of encouraging young people in Macedonia to go abroad and seek a job there, we need to offer them the support and the chance to utilize their potential in their own country.

Vision: To provide guidance and non-formal education to every young individual in Macedonia in order to help them launch a professional career.

Mission: Assist every young person in Macedonia to find their place in the professional environment.

We asked young people whether they would use the services of an intermediary agency to

help them gain non-formal education and offer them part-time and/or permanent job

positions

Yes (90%)

No (10%)

Target group: young people aged 19-26

Educational background: social sciences, technological sciences and arts and humanities.

Our program consists of two segments:

Education: We recognize that these people

already have a professional profile. Therefore, our aim is to decrease the gap between the formal education and the job market requirements, by soft

skills trainings, career direction advices, workshops about

realizing their potential, self development through self

discovery, all headed towards helping them sell themselves on

the job market.

Temporary employment:

After they have been educated, they are connected

with domestic and foreign companies that need additional

workforce, through outsourcing, micro sourcing and crowd sourcing. We will ensure partnerships with the

companies, who will offer short term job opportunities. Young

people will work from their homes in Macedonia or will work at the company in the

foreign office for a brief period of time thus gaining valuable

experience.

With this program we will help the fresh graduates to decrease the

discrepancies between their formal education and the job market

requirements. With that the young people will be one step closer to

reaching their professional goals and getting a permanent job. That will help the Macedonian society by decreasing the brain drain and

boosting the economy.

Decreasing youth unemploymentFinal solution

EvaluationCurrent formal and non-

formal education of applicants, their profile and competencies are assessed

and a plan for improvement is drafted

EducationOur organization will assist

people in getting and improving relevant job skills

through training, mentorship and

intelligent matching

Temporary Employment

Intensive short term working

experience in a domestic or

foreign company with the additional help of a mentor

EmploymentAfter young people attain

critical skills, they are fit to open

their own business or apply for a job

with their experience

In the end, we hope to improve the position of young people in Macedonia, create a stable organization which is self-sufficient and partners with the relevant educational, business and governmental entities.

We measure our success by:

– Decreased brain drain

– Increased % of young people employed in Macedonia

– Increased number of successful new business started by youth