This is the Extended Students’ Practicum Programme through the ESPA 2014-2020 (E.U.T.). The Department of Early Childhood Education participates in the action “Higher Education Students’ Practicum of the University of Western Macedonia” with the code PPS MIS 5031197 of the Operational Programme “Human Resources Development, Education and Lifelong Learning 2014-2020”, which is co-funded by the European Union (European Community Fund) and National Resources.
The Students’ Practicum (S.P.) of the University of Western Macedonia aims at the adequate preparation of the students to effectively apply the knowledge they acquire during their studies and to work in a field of work with direct or indirect relevance to their studies. The activities developed within the framework of the S.P. refer to the strengthening of the activities of the students, seeking to make better use at a professional level of the knowledge and skills acquired during their studies and their easier and more beneficial integration into the labor market. E.S.P. is an important part of Higher Education, as it concerns the acquisition of work experience and the contact of students with the labor market. For this reason, the Department has developed cooperation with host organizations, such as libraries, kindergartens, playgrounds, hospitals, museums, cultural institutions, environmental education, and technology centers, etc.
The acquisition of professional experience through the E.S.P. can help in the correct career guidance of the student, who in many cases has not defined her professional goals or has not yet sought alternative professional opportunities. The E.S.P. in the Department of Early Childhood Education is institutionalized and has a duration of two months. The students apply to the electronic platform of the programme and then the approximately 25 S.P. places that we have available for each year (depending on the funding that the programme gets) are distributed according to an algorithm that has been defined and takes into account the number of courses that the candidate has passed and the semester in which it is available.
Students of the 3th, 4th, 5th, and 6th semester can participate in the E.S.P. Participation in the E.S.P. is equivalent to attending an elective course. During the implementation of the S.P., students are supervised by one professor who is the same for all of them. During the E.S.P., students are provided with remuneration and insurance coverage.
The E.S.P. can be done in Public or Private entities at a rate of 45% and 55% respectively. This ratio is imposed by the European Commission and is unswerving. The host institution declares the S.P. positions it wishes on the ATLAS platform (Central Support System for the Practical Training of University Students (https://atlas.grnet.gr/), where the place is committed for the candidate student. https://arch.icte.uowm.gr/iposition/index.php?=site/login. The official website of the E.S.P. is: https//internship.uowm.gr/the-programme/.
For the E.S.P., the Office of Practical Training operates in the building of the Deanship of the Pedagogical School (318). Office Manager: Ms Athina Dimaki.
