The Vice-Principal for Lifelong Learning, Teaching Transformation and Employment, Ángeles Solanes, inaugurated the Forum of the Faculty of Social Sciences, the first of the University of Valencia's Employment Forums for the second four-month period, accompanied by the Councillor for Justice, the Interior and Public Administration, Gabriela Bravo, in an event that was preceded by a keynote speech by the Director General of Employment and Training of Labora, Rocío Briones.
The Vice-Principal Ángeles Solanes has highlighted the Forums of the Universitat de València as one of the most effective initiatives to bring students closer to, and connect them with, the business world, professional associations, NGOs and the public administration. “We are a university of excellence that cares about your education, but also about your professional future. We work to help you enter the world of work, and this event should serve to show future employers the university talent at their disposal,” she said, addressing the student body.
The Regional Minister Gabriela Bravo, for her part, announced in her speech that the 2023 Public Employment Offer (OPE) for the Generalitat will include more than 600 posts, of which 50–60% will be filled by open competition (without a merits-based assessment), and will include the evaluation of a period of paid internships analogous to the MIR for medical personnel. Publication of the OPE is scheduled for this March.
In this regard, the Regional Minister emphasised that the Generalitat “is entering its years of highest public-sector recruitment” because it needs to effect “a generational turnover requiring more than 50% of posts to be replaced.” To achieve this, Gabriela Bravo appealed to “the dedication, commitment and talent” of young people.
The Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences, Albert Moncusí, who completed this inaugural panel, stressed his “hope” that once again the Employment Forum “will serve as a springboard for the professional futures” of all the students. “The Universitat de València is a public university, which means it expects the talent it cultivates to return to society to help people,” he asserted.
The event was also attended by the Director-General of Labora, Rocío Briones; the Manager of the Fundació General UV, Cristóbal Suria; the Principal’s Delegate for Placements and Employment, Jesús Soret; members of the Dean’s team; academic staff; and a large group of students.
An Event in Chilly Conditions
Despite the low temperatures, the day proceeded entirely normally. From 9 am, talks, round-tables and workshops began, while 32 companies and organisations were erecting their stands outside the Faculty.
Professional associations, NGOs, trade unions, language schools, research chairs, academies… all received hundreds of visits from midday onwards. Among them were: Fundació València Activa, LABORA-GVA, the Official Association of Labour Relations Graduates of València (COGRASOVA), the Valencian Federation of Worker Cooperative Enterprises (FEVECTA) and the Regional Ministry of Justice, Interior and Public Administration offering full information on the new public-sector recruitment system.
All these organisations were visited by Vice-Principal Ángeles Solanes, who presented each with a certificate of participation, accompanied by the Principal’s Delegate for Placements and Employment and the Dean of the Faculty.
Organised by UVocupació, through the Vice-Rectorate for Continuing Education, Teaching Transformation and Employment, with the support of the Fundació General UV and in collaboration with the Faculty of Social Sciences, the Forum was designed to boost the employability of the centre’s future graduates.
The first participants of the day were the sector’s professional associations (Labour Relations Graduates, Social Work, and Political Science and Sociology of the Valencian Community), each delivering a lecture aimed at undergraduate students.
This was followed by a round-table of experts discussing career opportunities within the Social Sciences; and at 11 am the Assembly Hall hosted a conference by the Director-General for Employment and Training at Labora, Rocío Briones, on the situation of young people in the labour market. She presented encouraging data on market trends (permanent contracts have risen from 8% to 40%) and delivered a clear message: “There is a direct relationship between qualification and employment; therefore, the higher the qualification, the lower the unemployment and the lower the job insecurity,” she affirmed.
Afternoon Sessions of the Forum
The afternoon session began with a workshop led by UVocupació’s technical staff, addressing the professional competencies demanded by today’s labour market; while LABORA offered a lecture on working in the public and private sectors to explore new career opportunities within the Social Sciences.
The day concluded with a session dedicated to the career prospects of official master’s degrees in Social Welfare, Human Resources Management and Leadership, Cultural Management, and Occupational Risk Prevention.
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