Yevhen Penchuk is a fourth-year agronomy student of the Tavria State Agrotechnological University. He is also a participant in the AgrokebetyPRO program. The implementation of the project is supported by USAID Economic Resilience Activity (ERA). Yevhen received eight awards from tutors of the Agrokebety training program. Read the story below to learn about overcoming challenges, self-improvement, and achieving higher goals.
Yevhen Penchuk believes that an agronomy student during wartime must be responsible, decisive, active, able to learn quickly and strive for constant self-improvement. In the summer of 2022, the University was relocated from Melitopol to Zaporizhzhia during the enrollment period. The administration of the University asked students for help. Yevhen was one of those who responded and was later offered a job in one of the faculties.
During this period, he also learnt about AgrokebetyPRO project, which is aimed at helping students to get professional training, and issupervised by tutors at the leading agricultural companies.
“The University was relocated to Zaporizhzhia, where the security situation was not favorable for offline professional training. AgrokebetyPRO therefore became a perfect solution for me and my colleagues. We were able to attend online lectures facilitated by experts, and take guided tours in leading enterprises. Also, the project included online testing and we were awarded with certificates of completion of professional training”, Yevhen notes.
AgrokebetyPRO presented a lot of opportunities, including professional experience, job offers, and valuable knowledge and skills.
Yevhen recounts further:
“Agrokebety PRO gave me maximum knowledge and skills necessary for enhancing my CV. This is very important for a student. This project helped me to find my place in the agricultural sector. First of all, you need to analyze and visualize. Analysis and visualization will help you to understand your position and circumstances around you. Then, you must focus. Try to clarify whether you like what you’re doing or not. Thirdly, be brave. You need to have the courage to admit to what you want. Equally important is planning. Make plans to achieve the desired result. And finally, act boldly and persistently. Start implementing your plan, the main thing is not to be afraid of mistakes. All of this will help you to take active steps towards your own goal, and feel confident about your capabilities.”.
Within the course of the project, Yevhen was rewarded for his hard work – eight such awards. Having successfully completed the practical task given by experts fromPrJSC MHP, the largest producer and exporter of chicken in Ukraine, Yevhen received an invitation to a three-day event MHP AGRI FUTURE held in Vinnytsia Oblast. During the event, Yevhen visited compound feed production facilities where he learnt about the innovations and digital technologies in agricultural businesses. For example, he observed how drones are used for spraying in the fields, and how to manipulate a tractor or а combine harvester using GPS. Yevhen also observed the process of sunflower oil production, which he found to be of great interest
Recently, Yevhen was awarded an academic scholarship by the President of Ukraine. He also became a member of the Council for Internally Displaced Persons of Zaporizhzhia Military-Civilian Administration.
“In my opinion, soft skills are very important for career development. Such skills help young professionals to adapt to a new working environment. This is why it is crucial to develop skills of communication, responsibility, leadership, creativity and adaptability”, says Yevhen.
However, he also believes it is important not to forget about hard skills:
“Analysis of labor market helps to develop the required skills. Having studied the most common requirements of the employers, you should train particular skills using all available resources: online and offline courses, workshops, trainings, and communication with colleagues. Make sure to apply the acquired skills in your work”, Yevhen summarized.
Currently, AgrokebetyPRO is implementing the third phase of the project, called “Agroentrepreneurship“. You can join the project by filling in the online form: https://bit.ly/agrokebetypro-agbusiness