From sewing to studying Morse code: what impressed the “Festival of professions” in Minsk

“Festival of professions” was organized in the Central children’s Park named after M. Gorky on September 12. 16 colleges and universities of Belarus presented their locations, Minsk-Novosti correspondent reports.

- Congratulations on City Day! It is noteworthy that the Ministry of Education made a proposal to hold the “Festival of Professions” in the Central Gorky Children’s Park today. Minsk consists of a large number of enterprises, and, of course, specialists from various industries work there. It is important for us that trained people come to each organization who have received the necessary education, acquired important skills and skills. There are colleges and universities from all over Belarus. Students of these institutions will acquaint Minsk residents of different ages with the professions they are studying for. I hope very much that this festival will give schoolchildren the opportunity to choose an educational institution to their liking and a profession with which they will go through life, said Vladimir Kukharev, Chairman of the Minsk City Executive Committee.

As noted by Deputy Chairman of the Minsk City Executive Committee Andrey Strigelsky, interest in secondary special education among young people is growing every year. About 70% of vacancies at enterprises are closed by students in working specialties.

- The festival presents more than 200 professions and about 100 specialties. This year we invited companies that are employees. Here are INTEGRAL, Bellift, construction organizations. They offer future college and university applicants their working conditions and bonuses. We see: customers are interested in graduates of schools, gymnasiums and lyceums to lead them on the way from universities and colleges to further employment, said A. Strigelsky.

Adults and children with interest were photographed in locations, painted, sewed, played board games, tried themselves in programming and control of a game tank.

- Of all the variety of educational institutions in youth, I would prefer the philological faculty of BSU, because since childhood I loved to read, was fond of languages and literature. Probably, now I would not change my choice, but from the point of view of the current state of the economy of the city and the country, there are good opportunities for children in specialties related to microelectronics, construction and mechanical engineering. Today, Belarus needs engineering personnel, training professionals who will produce a product that can compete in the world market, Strigelsky added.

Before passing the stations, participants were given workbooks with 16 locations. Among the main professions are rescuers, medical workers, artists, seamstresses, drivers, builders, industrial specialists, etc. After completing the task in the workbook of the festival guest, a signature was put next to the name of the desired station. When passing all 16 locations, Minsk residents expected a super prize.

- We offer to participate in a master class on the manufacture of notebooks and postcards using a hand punched punch. The guys choose the cover that they want to see on their notebook, decorate with bows, ribbons and stickers. We can also make vintage postcards, glue stamps on them, and then give them to family and friends, said Elizaveta Savanchuk, a student of the Minsk State Vocational and Technical College of Polygraphy named after V. Z. Horuzhy.

The program for preschoolers was prepared by the Minsk City Pedagogical College. Children can play tic-tac-toe, lay out words from letters, guess what lies in the mysterious box, arrange the caps in the correct sequence and paint plaster figurines.

The latest development was introduced by students of the Faculty of Mathematics and Information Technologies of P. Masherov Vitebsk State University.

- It was my first time at the festival. We work in a variety of areas – from robotics to artificial intelligence. Our latest development is a device to recognize moles that can later become a malignant tumor. We take a photo of a mole, send a trained neural network for analysis, and it determines the likelihood of cancer, said student Alexei Shugol.

Young people who study at the Faculty of Mining and Environmental Engineering of the Belarusian National Technical University presented minerals and rocks: magnetite, potassium salts, pyrite (“foolish gold”), quartz, amethyst brush, etc.

In addition to students, teachers came to the festival.

- At our stand, anyone can study the work of the security system, which was developed by the students themselves. It includes motion and smoke sensors. Festival guests can turn on, customize and program all items. There is also a joint development of students and teachers – charging devices in the frequency range of the Wi-Fi network. This device can charge various low-power devices without a cable connection. We also brought a smart greenhouse that can automatically water plants, heat or, conversely, cool the air. There are plans to add the opportunity to fertilize flowers. We also introduce the work of a 3D printer, which is partially developed by students. By changing the elements, you can influence the size of the final product, said Sergey Sokolov, associate professor of general physics at the Faculty of Physics and Information Technologies of Gomel State University.

Cadets of the Military Academy of Belarus taught Minsk citizens Morse code. Each letter and number has its own designation - dots, dashes. But the guests of the location were taught by humming – according to the cadets, it is easier and faster. In addition, wired telephones, radio stations and helmets were presented.

- This is the second time I have participated in the Festival of Professions. She has already visited the art territory, the green alley and the center of prizes, was able to test her knowledge of foreign languages. I really liked the programming locations and creative sections, said Anastasia Ageychik from Minsk.

Also at the festival summed up the results of the drawing competition for the Year of the Belarusian woman.

- In my work, I portrayed Marina Vasilevskaya, the first woman in the history of sovereign Belarus to conquer space. I painted it with the National Flag, looking to a bright future, said the participant of Milana Calute.

Photo by Sergei Pozhi