Research with Balu und Du from the Osnabrück University (UOS)

The mentoring program Balu und Du at the UOS has published its 2017 Effectiveness Report (Wirkungsbericht), in which the Scientific Director of the Costa Rica Center, PD Dr. Susanne Müller-Using, has contributed with content on findings of the concluded comparative study about the University Teacher Training in Costa Rica and Germany with the topic: “From Pedagogical Knowledge to Empathic Action. An International Comparison of University Teacher Education Concepts” (Read more). Students from Balu and Du participated in the study.

To learn more about the organization Balu und Du, please visit their website.

Download: Wirksungsbericht 2017 (German)

Promotion of Business Soft Skills in the Vocational Training of Young Students at Technical Professional Colleges in the Province of Heredia, Costa Rica

The development of general professional skills such as communication and conflict resolution are, along with the transfer of subject-specific technical knowledge, a central component of the vocational training of students in Professional Technical Colleges of the Ministry of Public Education of Costa Rica. The project, initiated by the School of Administration of the Universidad Nacional (UNA), Costa Rica, in collaboration with the Department of Technical Education and Entrepreneurial Skills of the Ministry of Public Education, Costa Rica, addresses this need in professional technical colleges located in the province of Heredia, by promoting the development of relevant skills as part of the training program. "The first workshops were a great success and strengthened young people's knowledge of business soft skills regarding communication in the professional context," says Kattia Lizzett Vasconcelos-Vásquez, program coordinator of the School of Management of the Universidad Nacional of Costa Rica.

Together with a research team from the Institute of Psychology of Osnabrück University (UOS), a module of the training cycle focuses on the promotion of sustainable occupational competence as a key competence for students from professional colleges, in the private sector as well as in the entrepreneurial sector.

Furthermore, for quality assurance, the training cycle will be extensively evaluated with the help of the UOS team. In addition, recommendations for education policy will be deducted. The aim of the program is to equip participants with the necessary competencies to make successful contributions to a sustainable world in both, the professional and private sector.

Associated cooperation partners: Department of Technical Education and Entrepreneurial Skills of the Ministry of Public Education of Costa Rica; Kattia Lizzett Vasconcelos- Vásquez y Jinette Ugalde Naranjo from the School of Administration of the UNA; Prof. Dr. Karsten Müller, Dr. Regina Kempen and M.Sc. Shirin Betzler from the School of Psychology, Department of Cross-cultural Business Psychology of the UOS.