A last stakeholder event of EDU-LAB was held in Romania on 25-26 June, hosted by EDU-LAB partner, the Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu. The aim of the event was to exchange experiences with local stakeholders through presenting project results and learning about successful cooperation models in the region between businesses and the Lucian Blaga University.

Dr. Livia Ilie, Vice Rector of the Lucian Blaga University, Daniela Burghila, General Director of the Ministry of National Education and Christine Manta-Klemens from the Sibiu County School Inspectorate opened the event with a few welcoming words, pointing out cooperation gaps betweeneducation and the labour market and the effects of brain drain in Sibiu county.

Sibiu is experiencing high emigration rates, just like other parts of the country, and migration is especially high among highly skilled workers, what results in a serius labour shortage. Ms Manta-Klemens emphasised that the region needs to find long-term solutions instead of short-term fixes involving different local stakeholders in the process.

Some good practices have already been established, with the cooperation of the University of Sibiu and local companies, that demonstrate that skilled young people can have the opportunity to have a good professional career in their home region as well. Maria Oancea, Head of Human Resources Department at KeepCalling and Silviu Rei, Head of Research and Development at BU B&S Sibiu Continental explained how they cooperate with the University of Sibiu, offering internships and research opportunities for students with the possibility of future employment. At BU B&S Sibiu Continental, professors also can be hired both at the university and at the company, which strengthens the advancement of research and development on both sides.

After having discussed local examples, EDU-LAB partners presented the results of the project. Dr. des. Ágnes Sebestyén (Project Director, European Foundation for Education) laid out the context and milestones of the project. The e-learning courses developed within EDU-LAB were presented by Anca Şerban (Lucian Blaga University), EDU-LAB), followed by the presentation of the pilot activities. Barbara Plachá (German-Slovak Chamber of Industry and Commerce) and Veronika Hanulová (Volkswagen Slovakia) presented the pilot activities in Slovakia and explaining in detail the system and curricula of the first professional Bachelor`s study programme launched in 2018.

Finally, Sebastijan Frumen (University of Maribor, EDU-LAB) presented the activities performed at the University of Maribor, particularly the introduction of a new matching platform, serving to connect students with companies looking for interns, developed within the framework of EDU-LAB.

The meeting turned out to be a great platform to disseminate the results of EDU-LAB in a region where the core issues of project are highly relevant, while EDU-LAB partners could gain inspiration from the examples of Sibiu in handling brain drain and offering employment opportunities for skilled graduates.