‘I embarked on a job search with lots of optimism and excitement right after I graduated both in law and marketing. I was certain this would increase my chances of getting a job and that I would soon land a job.’ 

This is how Tina Fonovič begins her story. However, she was wrong: the path to her first job was not as smooth and easy as she had imagined. It took a long time to find her path to a career. Thanks to a Slovenian ESF project, she finally landed a job in public relations.

Tina is one of nearly 3,000 young people who got a job with the help of the ‘First challenge’, a programme that encouraged employers to hire young (under 30), unemployed people from Eastern Slovenia by providing wage subsidies to employers. The payments totaled 7 250, and ran over a period of 15 months, allowing participants to gain important work experience. With on-the-job training, the project aimed to facilitate access to quality employment, thus improving possibilities for future roles.

‘Despite an academic degree I would most likely have waited much longer for my first opportunity, had it not been for the programme.’, added Tina, ‘I would not have found given a chance so quickly without First Challenge.’