«My community and my country value me.» How Zymnivska community helps students find their dream profession
In Zymnivska community in Volyn region, career guidance is no longer just a formality. Here, students are not merely told about different professions in class; they are given the opportunity to look inside a forensic pathologist’s briefcase, see how furniture is made, and sit in the cab of a modern combine harvester.
Read on to learn how the community has evolved from occasional trips to establishing a system of career guidance and counselling for students, how the village mayor personally opens the doors of local businesses to schoolchildren, and how the community invests in human capital development through career guidance.
From initiative to system: how occasional events became a system
Until recently, career guidance in Zymnivska community was mainly limited to the spring. Secondary school students visited local poultry farms or furniture workshops, received gifts, drank tea, and returned to their desks. It was a good tradition, but it failed to provide children with the most important thing – a conscious choice of profession.
The situation changed when Zymnivska community joined the Swiss-Ukrainian DECIDE project. Occasional trips turned into systematic work: the community now has a community career coordinator and three career counsellors.
‘This used to be simply the mayor’s initiative, with the support of the school headteachers. Now we have completed our training, we have a decision from the executive committee and a clear plan for implementing the careers guidance system. We take a holistic approach to every excursion: it is not just a trip, but part of a teenager’s long journey in choosing their profession,’ says Yuliia Stepaniuk, a headteacher of the hub lyceum, adviser to the village mayor and the community’s careers coordinator.
Initially, residents were cautious about the development of the career guidance system and the community’s new plans.
‘It was something unclear, a sort of blind spot. Parents and teachers did not fully understand why it was needed or what it would ultimately bring to the children,’ explains Yuliia Stepaniuk.
The turning point was the first large-scale event organised with the support of DECIDE Project. The community decided not simply to hold another lecture, but to bring together students in Grades 8–11 from all six schools in the community, and to invite their parents and teachers as well. Ultimately, the adults’ initial scepticism turned into keen interest when they heard their children’s honest questions.
‘This first big event really broke the ice. We saw that the children have a tremendous desire to learn about professions not from textbooks, but through practical experience. We also saw that they have plans to develop the community and understand what jobs are lacking here,’ says Yuliia Stepaniuk.
The teenagers were given the space to voice their opinions and the chance to imagine what kinds of businesses and jobs the community is lacking. Instead of abstract discussions, they began to draw up a specific list of places: from modern car repair workshops to mobile beauty salons.
During the discussion sessions, it also became clear that adults’ perceptions of “prestigious professions” often do not match teenagers’ reality.
‘For example, they are not particularly interested in a traditional agricultural enterprise, but the modern Microclimate production facility, which specialises in the design and manufacture of “perfectly clean” premises, really fascinates them. Or the police: when a forensic pathologist came to us with his professional case and laid out his instruments, everyone’s eyes lit up. Children need to be given a feel for a profession so that they can try it out and understand whether or not they are suited to it,’ says Halyna Zhalovaha, a career counsellor.
With whom and how to cooperate
The profession of a social worker proved to be a discovery for the teenagers. After visiting the local veterans’ hub, the children realised that it is not simply about helping people in difficult life circumstances, but about finding ways to integrate veterans into society after they return from the war.
‘Our graduates play a huge role. We have already held meetings where former students talked about universities and professions on an equal footing. For example, many want to join the police precisely because they see successful graduates in this field,’ says Halyna Zhalovaha.
In May 2026, eighth-graders learned about the work of a pharmacist and a dentist, and also tried their hand at playing the roles of a doctor and a patient.
Moreover, within the framework of developing the career guidance system, the school cooperates with local vocational education institutions located in the neighbouring city of Volodymyr. For instance, the agricultural college trains, amongst others, mechanics and land surveyors; one college trains welders and electricians; and another trains teachers.
‘We also organised a day at the village council for the schoolchildren. The children visited every department, observing how everything works from the inside. This is important, because the work of the community is not just about issuing certificates, as many people tend to think. The most interesting part was seeing the students try out different roles and try to work out exactly which position they would like to hold in the future,’ says Yuliia Stepaniuk.
How businesses open their doors to schoolchildren
Zymnivska community has found a unique way of communicating with business owners – the village mayor, Viacheslav Katolyk, personally negotiates school visits. This removes all barriers: from poultry farms, where children are dressed in sterile gowns, to large furniture factories, where the owners invite students into their executive offices.
The mayor himself is convinced that businesses should be as open as possible, because they will need these employees in the future.
‘We are an agricultural community with around 30 farms. Moreover, 30–40 new houses are built here every year. We are in desperate need of tractor drivers, builders, electricians, and plumbers. These days, an electrician is not just someone with a tool; they are a specialist who installs “smart home” technology, fits solar panels, and controls automation systems via a mobile phone. And I always say: if a specialist is a skilled electrician who understands “smart home” systems, GPS technologies and automation, they can earn more than people with a university degree,’ emphasises Viacheslav Katolyk.
The mayor adds that careers guidance is also about tackling migration, ‘If a child can see, right from school, the prospect of developing here, in their own community, they will not go to Poland to work.’
He speaks openly about the imbalance: there is a queue for legal jobs, whereas finding a qualified tractor driver for a utility company is a real challenge.
‘Career guidance is a triangle: business, authorities, and education. Our task is to communicate constantly and encourage children to make choices that will lead to their success. The authorities should provide support where it is needed, and not stand in the way where business is already ready to take action. We are aware that changing mindsets takes time, but we have to walk this path to conscious profession choice together with our young people,’ says Viacheslav Katolyk.
First results and plans
The system is already yielding tangible results. Teachers recount the story of a former nine-grade student. The boy had not shown much interest in academic studies, but after a series of excursions to farms, where he saw modern, powerful machinery, his decision was firm, ‘I’m going to be a tractor driver.’ He is now studying successfully at a vocational college.
Another group of students, after visiting a hospital laboratory and learning about the work of laboratory technicians, chose a biology specialism with a view to working in medicine in the future.
‘Our greatest joy is when a child has made up their mind. That they go to university not because their parents told them to, but because they want it themselves,’ says Halyna Zhalovaha.
In June 2026, the community also announced a local forum on successful career guidance practices at the hub lyceum in Zymne. Students in Grades 8–9, teachers, career counsellors, and local authorities discussed the community’s experience.
Another way for students to try their hand at different professions was the eFEST engineering festival held at the lyceum. The children built robots and small machines, programmed, constructed bridges and engineering structures, made mini-torches, and carried out physics experiments.
The community does not stop at what has already been achieved. On 1 September, the JOBS course from DECIDE officially began in schools for students in Grades 8–9. Teachers have undergone training and are integrating it into the curriculum.
However, introducing the new course is not just about changing the timetable or using new textbooks. According to the community’s teachers, the main challenge lies in the teachers’ own professional development. Career guidance based on DECIDE model requires a shift away from the traditional role of the “teacher at the blackboard” to that of a facilitator and career counsellor.
Halyna Zhalovaha emphasises that the most difficult part of this process is changing the familiar format of interaction with teenagers and moving beyond the traditional classroom lesson.
‘The hardest part will be breaking down this long-standing “teacher-pupil” barrier. We need to become partners, shift to a training format where we are on an equal footing with the children, listen to them, and help them find their own answers to questions about the future. This transition to open dialogue is what will help students express themselves fully. However, we expect that, thanks to the course, the children will learn to make conscious choices. The ideal outcome for us is for every student to find their true dream profession. One that will provide not only financial stability but also personal fulfilment,’ says Halyna Zhalovaha.
On 30 September 2026, Zymnivska community became one of the winners of DECIDE grant competition to establish a careers guidance hub in an educational institution. Even more importantly, careers guidance activities have now been officially included in Development Strategy of Zymnivska Community.
‘To have a successful country, we need successful people. And a child is successful when they have a goal. We want every one of our graduates to feel, “My community and my country value me”,’ concludes Yuliia Stepaniuk.
The DECIDE project is implemented by NGO DOCCU and PHZH International Projects in Education with the support of the Embassy of Switzerland in Ukraine.