EPAM + universities: how we cooperate with universities of Ukraine
In Ukraine, EPAM exists and has been successfully operating for more than 12 years. During this time, the company has grown to the largest IT player in the Ukrainian market. Maxim Pochebut, head of educational programs at EPAM Ukraine, tells how the company is building relationships with Ukrainian universities, what opportunities are available to students and why they launched an internship program for teachers.
The educational programs of the Eram company started in Ukraine in 2010-11. Their goal is simple: to give students the necessary relevant knowledge and practical skills for future employment in the company. At the moment, EPAM cooperates with the 20 largest Ukrainian universities - we hold lectures, workshops, excursions to offices - in a word, we are trying to give students the opportunity to decide on their future specialization from the first courses. After all, often, choosing the profession of IT person, young people do not know who exactly they want to be and how these or other functional roles differ.
The educational program EPAM is available in 5 cities of Ukraine: Kharkiv, Lviv, Kiev, Dnieper, Vinnitsa. It consists of 2 parts: an optional course, held at the university base, and an internship directly at the company. At the end of each stage, students receive feedback from teachers and trainers: in which direction it is worth developing, what to pay attention to, what knowledge to “pull up”. If both stages are completed successfully, the listener receives a job offer for the Junior position. Last year, in the framework of the educational program, more than 600 junior specialists were trained.
Information on open destinations can be found on the program website .
To become a member of the educational program, you must pass the following steps:
Training schedule allows you to combine educational programs with study in high school or work. Classes are held in the evening, 2-3 times a week. Duration of courses depending on the specialty varies from 1.5 to 2.5 months (60-120 academic hours).
At the end of the elective course, each student passes a mandatory slice of knowledge in the format of testing, interviewing or protecting an individual project. Those who have shown excellent results, we invite for an internship in the company, where waiting for the "real" project work in a team. The second stage lasts from 2 to 5 months, depending on the chosen direction and personal effectiveness. As a rule, 90% of people who have passed this stage receive a proposal for cooperation in the Junior position.
Today, many large companies offer their own training programs. The principal difference of the Eram trainings is that we give a greater amount of knowledge and practice. The level of junior specialists trained in EPAM is above the market average. Therefore, a longer period of study, which at first glance seems to be a “minus”, in the long run turns into an undeniable “plus”. The extensive basic knowledge gained in the early stages is the basis for further professional growth in the future.
Another specific feature of EPAM is that we work not only with students and novice specialists, but also with teachers. Last year, our new initiative was launched - short-term (up to 4 weeks) internship programs for teachers. Part of the problem of the educational system is that university lecturers do not have relevant practical skills, although they must "keep a finger on the pulse." There are many reasons. Sometimes they physically do not have time for independent professional development, sometimes there is no proper motivation, and the “upgrade” that universities provide for them, takes place in a formal form. We try to help them keep abreast of the latest trends and stay “in the subject” from the point of view of practitioners.
The EPAM trainings are free, the educational program is an investment in the development of the company. And Ukrainian students have the opportunity to work with modern technologies on real combat projects for the largest companies in the world.
From the very beginning
The educational programs of the Eram company started in Ukraine in 2010-11. Their goal is simple: to give students the necessary relevant knowledge and practical skills for future employment in the company. At the moment, EPAM cooperates with the 20 largest Ukrainian universities - we hold lectures, workshops, excursions to offices - in a word, we are trying to give students the opportunity to decide on their future specialization from the first courses. After all, often, choosing the profession of IT person, young people do not know who exactly they want to be and how these or other functional roles differ.
The educational program EPAM is available in 5 cities of Ukraine: Kharkiv, Lviv, Kiev, Dnieper, Vinnitsa. It consists of 2 parts: an optional course, held at the university base, and an internship directly at the company. At the end of each stage, students receive feedback from teachers and trainers: in which direction it is worth developing, what to pay attention to, what knowledge to “pull up”. If both stages are completed successfully, the listener receives a job offer for the Junior position. Last year, in the framework of the educational program, more than 600 junior specialists were trained.
Information on open destinations can be found on the program website .
“I want to learn. What do I need to know? ”
To become a member of the educational program, you must pass the following steps:
- choose the direction of interest from the list of current courses ;
- make sure that your level of training meets the required minimum. If necessary, read the recommended literature, a list of which can be found in the description of each of the courses;
- submit an application;
- take an online test for proficiency in English;
- in case of successful completion of the language test - to pass a technical interview in the company;
- The next stage is an interview with a company recruiter, partially conducted in English;
- admission to the group of elective education, which, as a rule, takes place on the basis of universities.
Training schedule allows you to combine educational programs with study in high school or work. Classes are held in the evening, 2-3 times a week. Duration of courses depending on the specialty varies from 1.5 to 2.5 months (60-120 academic hours).
At the end of the elective course, each student passes a mandatory slice of knowledge in the format of testing, interviewing or protecting an individual project. Those who have shown excellent results, we invite for an internship in the company, where waiting for the "real" project work in a team. The second stage lasts from 2 to 5 months, depending on the chosen direction and personal effectiveness. As a rule, 90% of people who have passed this stage receive a proposal for cooperation in the Junior position.
Today, many large companies offer their own training programs. The principal difference of the Eram trainings is that we give a greater amount of knowledge and practice. The level of junior specialists trained in EPAM is above the market average. Therefore, a longer period of study, which at first glance seems to be a “minus”, in the long run turns into an undeniable “plus”. The extensive basic knowledge gained in the early stages is the basis for further professional growth in the future.
And what for teachers?
Another specific feature of EPAM is that we work not only with students and novice specialists, but also with teachers. Last year, our new initiative was launched - short-term (up to 4 weeks) internship programs for teachers. Part of the problem of the educational system is that university lecturers do not have relevant practical skills, although they must "keep a finger on the pulse." There are many reasons. Sometimes they physically do not have time for independent professional development, sometimes there is no proper motivation, and the “upgrade” that universities provide for them, takes place in a formal form. We try to help them keep abreast of the latest trends and stay “in the subject” from the point of view of practitioners.
Total
The EPAM trainings are free, the educational program is an investment in the development of the company. And Ukrainian students have the opportunity to work with modern technologies on real combat projects for the largest companies in the world.