The (ITEP) is an official Study Center founded in Madrid in 1977 and since then dedicated exclusively to Vocational Training. It has a complete offer of Online Vocational Training for both Middle and Higher Grades and the spirit of growth that it has has led this school to open a new center for the first time outside of Madrid, in Seville. Alfonso Martínez Balboa and María Teresa Llorente Menéndez, Heads of ITEP Expansion, detail the objectives of this institution, which is part of the MasterD Group, the largest educational group in Spain.
How would you assess the evolution of ITEP from its beginnings until now?
The history of ITEP tells us about the desire of a family to keep alive the memory and teaching work of the founder of the center, Ismael Sánchez González. From the moment of his death, when his wife and his children took over the business, the evolution of ITEP has been constant and positive.
The desire to bet on a teaching modality such as FP has led us to grow to the extent of our possibilities, both in space and in the training catalogue. In just 10 years, we went from a small center in the center of the capital to having 4 centers throughout the Community of Madrid and, this year, we added a large center in the city of Seville.
This growth in space has been accompanied by the addition of Training Cycles that we have been incorporating into our catalogue. As of today, we have 23 degrees divided between Intermediate Level Cycles, Higher Level Cycles and Online Cycles.
Vocational training is booming, what does ITEP offer that no other training school in this area has?
Indeed, we also perceive this boom and we attribute it to the ability of Vocational Training to qualify students both in theoretical skills and in practical realities in a relatively short space of time.
In this sense, at ITEP we bet that both circumstances are as united as possible. Each and every one of the centers that we have, and we believe that this sets us apart, have, in the same space, the equipment for the performance of theoretical classes and the didactic and technical means to carry out practices in the classrooms. This manages to optimize the time of the students avoiding displacements, which is an added advantage in times of COVID.
Another feature that makes us especially proud of our work is the effort we put into ensuring that our teachers have professional experience in the field in which they later carry out their educational work. This is how the transmission of real information about the future job position of the students is optimal.
What we have decided to call the ILE Method (Effective Labor Insertion) is another differentiating element that defines us. Through this work methodology we try to take care of and help our students in the difficult transition from the classroom to the world of work.
What opinion do you have about the recently approved new Vocational Training Law?
This is a Law that proposes to help the active population achieve the appropriate level of qualification in relation to the needs of the labor market, increasing the number of young people in the educational system who choose Vocational Training, and increasing the training of workers for their requalification permanent. For this, we believe that it is very interesting to set up a system of professional support and guidance that allows the design of individual and collective training itineraries, capable of helping to make training decisions throughout the working life. It should be noted that these action protocols fit perfectly with the philosophy that we have at ITEP and that translates into the development of the ILE Method.
How has ITEP adapted to the arrival of the pandemic?
ITEP has authorized teaching both in face-to-face and online modality for several courses. This is why we have teachers trained in the use of new technologies and all centers are equipped with the latest technologies for online training. Thanks to this, at the time when the pandemic prevented students from attending classrooms, the course could be continued with the highest quality guarantees. All students were able to attend class online daily with their teachers and were able to continue doing group work.
As the measures were softened, we were able to teach a hybrid modality with half the students in the classroom and the other half at home. In this way we were able to continue with the classes at the times and content established before the pandemic.
What kind of methodology do you follow in school as it is completely online teaching?
For us, Online training is characterized by great flexibility in the development of the course, allowing each student to carry out their own pace of work.
Throughout their training, students have the support of a team of tutors, made up of expert teachers, who will guide them to obtain the maximum performance from this formative modality. Every week a virtual class is taught for each of the subjects in which the student is enrolled, so we address both the theory of each topic and practical cases that reinforce the theoretical content and prepare students for the world of work.
We also have a team of professionals who are available to students to accompany and facilitate the teaching and learning process: Pedagogical Coordination (educational guidance), Secretary (procedures) and Technical Support department.
We have a state-of-the-art virtual campus that is available to students from day one. It has exclusive content for those students who have not studied for a long time and who want to review basic concepts that will help them in their current studies. We also put audiovisual material on campus that reinforces theory and gives a closer look at professional practice.
What are the most outstanding courses in the training catalog that you offer?
The training offer that ITEP offers is extensive, we could speak first of all about the Health professional family, which since the beginning of the Center has been present in our training catalogue. Highlighting in said professional family, among others, the Intermediate Training Cycles of Nursing Auxiliary Care, Health Emergencies and Pharmacy and Parapharmacy.
Higher level training cycles in Imaging for Diagnosis and Nuclear Medicine, Pathological Anatomy and Cytodiagnosis, Clinical and Biomedical Laboratory, Oral Hygiene and Dietetics.
The rest of the most outstanding Cycles are distributed among the families of Sociocultural Services and the Community that has the Higher Degree of Social Integration among others, the professional family of Computer Science that we have noticed how the student body has grown in recent years and in which we can highlight the Higher Degree in Multiplatform Application Development and finally the Administration and Management family with the Higher Degree Cycle in Administration and Finance.
Do you think that the students who complete their training at ITEP have a chance of finding a job?
The answer is simple: Yes, without a doubt. At ITEP we know of the options that exist for these possibilities to materialize in real jobs related to the professional sector for which they have been trained, and we have been observing this in employability levels above 80% that we have thanks to the close collaboration of business agents and our extensive national network of collaborating companies. At ITEP we want job placement to be effective, for our students to become the protagonists of their future work and to be able to achieve their professional objective with our permanent support.
What exactly is the ILE Method?
The Effective Labor Insertion Method (ILE) is an exclusive orientation, intermediation and advice service carried out by specialists in personnel selection. It is dedicated to favoring the employability of our students thanks to a personalized accompaniment from the beginning of their training until they get a job in their professional sector. For this, we carry out professional orientation actions, inclusion in our own employment exchange, we promote self-employment and entrepreneurship, we hold employment days with collaborating companies, specialization and postgraduate programs, occupational observatories and we carry out monitoring tasks of the labor trajectory of our ex student. In short, an effective bridge between the classroom and the world of work, as we said before.
Why have they started to open a school in Seville?
Since the online teaching modality was launched, at ITEP we have exhaustively monitored the origin of our students. This has made us aware that in Andalusia we have many people who have chosen us to be able to train. The current regulations mean that, in online teaching, final exams must be face-to-face. Therefore, the opening of ITEP Sevilla meets two objectives. Being present in the capital of Andalusia we facilitate, to some extent, the students to take the exams so that they do not have to travel to Madrid. But also, the arrival of the training center in a new environment gives us the opportunity to explore new training categories, meet new student profiles and lay the first stone in the expansion process that we want to carry out in the coming years.
What goals do you hope to achieve in the long term?
At ITEP we are convinced that the development of the country depends on the growth of vocational training and for this we work every day. Our objective is to continue bringing vocational training closer to all those who want, or need, training to improve their preparation and employability. In the near future we will continue expanding our training offer and improving the tools we have.
Another of our objectives is to bring vocational training closer to the company so that our students can, at the end of their studies, achieve an effective job placement.
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