Nowadays, organizations are looking for competent professionals who know their field and pay a lot of attention to their personal qualities: needs to constantly learn new things, flexibility, responsibility, creativity, ability to work with a team, cooperate and constructively solve problems. A lot of attention is being paid by Kaunas University of Applied Sciences academic staff to develop these characteristics in students whilst improving and developing study programmes in relation to market tendencies and needs. The professional competencies of Kaunas University of Applied Sciences graduates are particularly valued by employers, about 85% of them are employed immediately after graduation.

Studies applied in work

At Kaunas University of Applied Sciences, study programmes are developed in such a way that during studies students acquire strong theoretical knowledge and develop their practical skills to the maximum. Radvilė Krušinskienė, Head of the IT Operations division in „TransUnion Baltics“ company, which develops innovative technological products, emphasizes that the main value of cooperating with Kaunas University of Applied Sciences is qualified, curious, young specialists. R. Krušinskienė points out: “As far as I have encountered students from Kaunas University of Applied Sciences, they come ready to work from day one, show their eagerness to learn even further. We look at each person responsibly, and I can say that our current goal is to ensure a career path for everyone who comes to us for at least four years.”

Ingrida Pakštienė, Human Resources manager at Lithuanian Transport and Logistics Group “BTL Group” has noticed that students are full of initiative, and quickly merge into the labour market, move up their career ladder. While cooperating with Kaunas University of Applied Sciences for a long time, they noticed that majority of students bring the right attitude along with a considerable amount of knowledge, which is their secret of success. I. Pakštienė says: “A great deal of the students of Kaunas University of Applied Sciences have already become a part of our team, while some of them made a career and took managing positions”. This reveals that cooperation with Kaunas University of Applied Sciences allows them to feel how the performance of the company correlates with higher education programmes, which are an essential part of the business world.

According to Guoda Mikučionytė, a personnel specialist at the international furniture company “Theca Furniture”, the cooperation between science and business areas allows employers to find the best specialists, and students to gain international experience. The specialist says: “Thanks to Kaunas University of Applied Sciences we can meet and share our experiences with very talented, motivated and excellent specialists. “Theca Furniture” products decorate interiors and furniture stores around the world, therefore we can give students and graduates a chance to show their abilities on a global scale“.

Employers value students’ curiosity

It is important for every future student to know what perspectives the awarded higher education diploma will provide, how the accumulated knowledge and practical skills will be assessed by future employers. It has been noticed that the representatives of employers always expect eagerness to learn, improve knowledge and abilities from young specialists.

Pakštienė, the personnel manager at “BTL Group”, distinguishes the following main features that are currently essential to young specialists: “When choosing students for their internships, we always look at them as potential members of our team. It is very important for us that the student is ambitious, and has a strong desire to improve his/her abilities and become a successful specialist or professional. It is also important to quickly react, be flexible and know how to adapt to constantly changing environment and challenges.”

R. Krušinskienė, Head of IT Operations at “TransUnion Baltics”, adds up that although knowing the specifics of the company is important, the most important thing is desire for knowledge. “We are always looking forward not only to IT students, but also to specialists in other fields, although it is important that they have at least some knowledge in the field of technologies. Of course, technological issues are much easier to understand when a student is open and eager to learn about them.”

Augustas Lukoševičius, an ambassador of one of the largest mobile service companies in Lithuania “Bitė”, states that young professionals who want to enter the labour market, fascinate by their perseverance, motivation, and willingness to work. “I personally was a mentor of a student of Kaunas University of Applied Sciences, who was always focused on the goal, optimistic, who had and, most importantly, wanted to gain even more work experience and knowledge. What fascinated me was that he would come to work earlier than I used to.” Having shared his experience, he adds: “According to my knowledge, many graduates of Kaunas University of Applied Sciences work at “Bitė” today, and at least two of them are managers. Therefore, I can state that Kaunas University of Applied Sciences trains good personalities.”