Leonardo Da Vinci

General information about the Leonardo Da Vinci II program

Leonardo da Vinci is a program for implementing EU policy in the field of vocational education and training. The first phase of the program lasted 5 years – from 01.01.1995 until 31.12.1999. It started in 1998 in Bulgaria with preparatory measures for joining the program and since 01.05.1999 Bulgaria has been a member country of this program.

The broad lines of the second phase were set out in the Council Decision of 26 April 1999 and continued for 7 years (01.01.2000-31.12.2006).

Bulgaria was officially admitted as a participating country in the second phase of the program, according to the Association Decision No3/02.08.2000.

The Leonardo da Vinci program supports and carries out the vocational training policy of the EU member countries taking into account its contents and organization in each country. It aims to develop quality, innovation and the European dimension in vocational training systems and practices through transnational co-operation and experience.

The program actively supports the lifelong policies, innovative transnational initiatives for promoting the knowledge, aptitudes and skills necessary for successful integration into working life and the full exercise of citizenship. It supports also joint actions with other European programs – particularly the Socrates and Youth programs. The projects supported by Leonardo da Vinci program focus on the transnational co-operation realized by all participants in the vocational training. The program aims to develop innovation and quality in the field of vocational education and training as well as students', workers', human resources managers' and instructors' mobility. In the second phase of the program the education and application of communication technologies and dissemination of innovative practices and common activities with other European educational programs are given priority.

The Leonardo da Vinci program pays special attention to labour mobility. The aim for the whole period of the program is for 250,000 people, most of them young, to raise their professional experience through practice in other countries, which is double the amount of the first phase of the program.

At the beginning of 2004 the university signed its first international Leonardo da Vinci agreement for a period of 3 years. The partner institution was the College of Tourism with a coordinator Assoc. Prof. Anesti Kokinov. In compliance with the project agreement the university received 55,636 euros for the development of software for automated testing and assessment of interpreters and translators and the compilation of corpora (terminology, dictionaries, audio information etc.) for the domains “media”, “tourism”, “libraries”, “law and legislation” and “auto motoring”.

At the end of 2007 the university signed its second international Leonardo da Vinci II agreement for a period of 3 years.