About Us

Our organization "Youth and Student Programmes" – YSP has a 12 year history of organizing brigades in UK and, since 2006, in USA.

In the beginning the first brigades were in Kent, South England, the so called “Garden of England “. The farms were all strawberry farms and only students from the Technical University in Sofia took part. Our partner is the English organization Concordia. It is an organization that enjoys people’s confidence not only in UK but in the whole world. The agents that work with Concordia are from Europe, Asia, Africa. One of the authorized agents of Concordia in Bulgaria is Damian Ivanov and his team Youth and Students Programmes.

As the years have passed, the number of students who want to go on a brigade in UK has increased. In 2003, the first office of YSP outside the Technical University was opened. It became possible for students from other universities in Sofia and in the country to participate in the programmes. The team increased. The energetic work of the members of this team, their enthusiasm and competence has helped YSP to become more popular. More and more students visit our office where they can ask questions about their stay that are of interest to them and can get individual advice.

The fact that we are situated near the Student Town and some of the biggest universities in our country is very important for the increase of the number of the students who apply. The creation of our own web-site helped us to become more popular.

The good and hard work of our young team and in particular the careful selection of suitable students, leaving for UK, has helped us to establish our reputation as a serious, reliable and trustworthy partner for the English organization, Concordia. All of this leads to an increase in the quota and the chance for more and more students to have the possibility to visit UK during the time they want.

The benefit and the good sides of the students’ brigades are huge. The character-building, discipline and self-reliance that students gain in the UK are useful not only for themselves but also for their lecturers. The students become more serious and more responsible, improve the level of their English language, and have the desire to continue to study other specialties or to get master degree. The time they spent living with people from other nationalities and religions leads to the creation of tolerance and friendship between the young people, changes their view of life, makes them less conservative and hostile to the people who differ from them. It is also very important that the students have the chance to learn more about the traditions, the culture of UK, the history and the past of the English people.

The most critical year for our activity was 2004. The worst and most unpleasant moment occurred in April 2004 when the British Embassy stopped issuing business visas for UK. All procedures at the Embassy were thoroughly investigated and they did not issue the students visas that give you the right to work agricultural job (the so called SAWS visas) for an indefinite period of time.
The lack of information, the reluctance of the government to interfere with a foreign investigation worried us and our students. Many of them were waiting to receive their work permits; others were waiting to get their visas. The dates for their departure were delayed many weeks.

We started a campaign by sending hundreds of letter to our Ministry of Foreign Affairs, several TV channels, and the media. Thanks to our initiative the media became sympathetic and reflected the problem. We want to thank all students; their parents and relatives who trusted in us; who had patience, who were prepared to become involved with resolving the problem and who stayed calm until the problem was resolved. The Embassy began to issue the SAWS visas once again in July.

During 2005 11 farmers, the owners of some of the biggest and the most famous farms that work with Concordia, visited Bulgaria and the office of YSP. They made interesting presentations in some of the biggest universities in Sofia and Plovdiv. The aim was to acquaint the Bulgarian students with the living and working conditions in the different farms during their stay in UK. The meetings were very interesting and effective, there were a lot of pictures and DVD movies, showing the different types of farms. This helped a lot of students. Those students who have already taken part in such programmes had the chance to remember the great time they have spent in UK and to meet with their farmers.

Most of them were given certificates for finishing English Language Course by their employers. At the office of YSP the farmers together with Mrs. Lumb – the executive director of Concordia were shown the way YSP works: the way the students are selected, how the interviews are conducted, the data base records from previous years. We stated that it is a priority for YSP to offer special assistance to students who have lost one or both parents, providing they have passed the interview and their personal qualities suit the requirements that Concordia has. The advantage of our work is the database feedback we have with students who have been to UK. In an inquiry every student has the chance to describe his stay in the farm when he comes back to Bulgaria. In this way this information becomes useful not only for the English organization Concordia which aims to constantly improve the living conditions In the farms but also for the students who will work in these farms in the future.

On 20 January 2006 the YSP team was invited to visit UK. During this business visit we visited the office of Concordia and several farms; we had the chance to see the way our English partner works. All this was very useful for us. We discussed a lot of questions which are important for the students, we saw how the work permits are issued, all the transfer procedures. We met Concordia team and negotiated our future work together.

During 2006 for the first time YSP became a sponsor for students who do not have parents and who cannot pay the fees for the brigade.

2006 was a pilot year for YSP in the arrangement of student brigades for USA .The first groups went to work in hotels, shops, restaurants, amusement parks and golf clubs .We will also extend this activity in the future. During 2007/2008 in parallel with the student brigade in UK, YSP will organize student brigade in USA.
We will retain our policy of giving priority to students applying for the second or third time; orphans; and children whose parents have low incomes, providing they show their high motivation and good qualities at interview.

On 01st of February 2007 the new office of “Youth and Student Programmes” was opened in City of Varna .It was opened to make the procedures for all of the students from southwestern and northwestern Bulgaria easier .The students do not need to travel all the way to our office in Sofia for the interview or to fill in their application forms for the programmes in United Kingdom and United States of America.

From 2008 only applicants from Bulgaria and Romania will have the right to participate in the SAWS programmes, organised by Concordia, and a greater number of applicants, who have desire to take part in a brigade in UK will have the chance to succeed.

During 2007 Concordia started a new programme SWEP- Student Worker Education Programme. This is a new approach to education and training enabling agricultural students to undertake a structured programme of practical training linked to technological training. The programme combines education and training with work practice on UK farms and horticultural holdings and is especially valuable for students from countries outside the UK. This is a unique opportunity to gain United Kingdom educational qualifications and accreditation for practical training, leading to UK Certificate in Agriculture and Horticulture.

For more information visit New Programmes.

We will be loyal to all the applicants, who wish to take part in the programmes organized by Concordia during 2008 and will try to come up to their expectations and to enjoy their confidence. We wish luck to all the applicants!

YSP TEAM