Skills for Success allows unemployed youth and people with disabilities to gain the necessary skills to improve their ability to access employment and other economic opportunities. Young women in particular are encouraged to apply. This partnership between MEPI and Amideast has three primary objectives:
- Improve English proficiency in the workplace in order to expand beneficiaries’ career and employment opportunities
- Allow program beneficiaries to develop soft and professional skills to facilitate their integration into the labor market through employment or entrepreneurship.
- Support program beneficiaries in securing employment, an internship, or additional training.
Skills for Success will train 900 participants over a period of three years. The program consists of the following five fundamental components: English language skills, transition to work, professional skills, pay-it-forward, and IT skills. These components, representing 220 hours of training over a period of four months, will be provided in an integrated manner — the different skills are interlinked and the phases of the training build upon each other.
In addition to the training itself, participants will facilitate workshops on personal development in their own communities. Thanks to the innovative “pay-it-forward” component, an additional 1,000 women and young people will benefit from this program.
Amideast’s learner-centered approach encourages participants to set personal goals and develop career action plans. Amideast ensures monitoring of training results, including participants’ professional status and if they are employed at a company or self-employed. Each component of the program is carefully monitored and evaluated.
Skills for Success will also strengthen training capacities at the local level. Amideast will offer its U.S.-certified Professional Certificate in English Language Teaching (PCELT) as well as its Effective Training Workshop, which is designed for trainers with experience in the area of professional skills. These two advanced courses aim to improve trainers’ skills and to prepare them to benefit from other long-term programs.
Participation in Skills for Success is open to individuals between the ages of 18 and 25 who are unemployed and not currently enrolled in any formal education or training. Women and youth with disabilities will be given priority in the selection process.
