On September 26th and 27th, “Beruf konkret” will take place in the RED BOX in Mönchengladbach, one of the largest fairs for career and study orientation in North Rhine-Westphalia. Over 130 companies, institutions and universities will introduce themselves to around 4,000 9th and 10th grade students from Mönchengladbach over two days and present the training opportunities in their companies. High school students and parents who want to get some orientation with their children are also invited.
The trade fair, which will celebrate its 30th anniversary in 2024, is organized by MGconnect, the skilled worker recruitment team of WFMG – Wirtschaftsförderung Mönchengladbach GmbH, the Mönchengladbach employment agency and the city of Mönchengladbach. “This event is a must for Mönchengladbach companies looking for trainees and for students of all types of schools who are looking for a training or study place,” says Axel Tillmanns, team leader at MGconnect.
Over two days (Thursday, September 26th, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and Friday, September 27th, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.), the trade fair offers anyone interested the opportunity to find out more about the various career fields and training opportunities that companies from the Vitusstadt have to offer. Mönchengladbach’s mayor Felix Heinrichs, the head of the department for culture, education and sport for the city of Mönchengladbach Christiane Schüßler and Rainer Imkamp, managing director of the Mönchengladbach employment agency, are among those expected to attend the official trade fair tour on Thursday at 10 a.m. “The schools in Mönchengladbach start with career orientation at an early stage. Our common goal: to open up prospects for vocational training or university studies for young people as quickly as possible after school. The ‘Berufs konkret’ trade fair is a perfect introduction to this. It provides an exciting overview of the very good career prospects in our city,” emphasises Schüßler.
Imkamp sees the fact that the number of company apprenticeships in Mönchengladbach has increased in recent years as “a strong signal for schoolchildren. Employers in Mönchengladbach are looking for young people to train them to become the urgently needed skilled workers of the future,” says the managing director of the local employment agency. The need for well-qualified employees, whether through training or studies, can be determined by a single figure: in this decade, around 25 percent of employees subject to social insurance contributions will retire. “This is an opportunity for the younger generation to find good career prospects seamlessly after leaving school – and the ‘Berufs konkret’ trade fair helps with the search, where an incredibly high number of companies, institutions and universities can be found,” says Imkamp.
For the first time, the RED BOX is the venue for “Beruf konkret”, after the fair took place two years ago in the former Karstadt building in Rheydt. Due to the immense demand from schools and companies, “Beruf konkret” will be held annually from this year onwards by MGconnect instead of every two years as before. Entry is free for young people and visitors, and the information stands are free for the exhibiting companies. “Beruf konkret” brings together numerous companies, educational establishments and institutions that present their apprenticeships, courses of study and internship opportunities. “Pupils have the opportunity to talk directly to HR managers and trainees, gain valuable insights into various professions and find out about the requirements and prospects in the world of work,” explains Ricarda Sybertz, project manager at MGconnect.
This year, “Berufs konkret” has been extended into the digital world for the first time and is accompanied by the vlipsnap web app. “This app enables the students to establish even more sustainable contacts with companies and to document the number of conversations. The students also have access to their collected contact details after the fair, clearly laid out in the web application,” emphasizes Yvonne Cremer, also project manager at MGconnect.
How does the app work? The students receive an individual QR code that they can use to create their own profile in a web app. After a conversation, the exhibitors scan the QR code and the student receives the contact details of the person they are talking to via the app. This enables potential trainees to stay in touch with the companies even after the trade fair. All information and current news about the trade fair can be found on www.beruf-konkret.de and MGconnect’s social media channels.
