State Lead - Vocational Training

This role is for one of Weekday’s clients

Salary range: Rs 2000000 - Rs 3000000 (ie INR 20 - 30 LPA)

Min Experience: 7+ years

Location: Mumbai, Maharashtra, India

JobType: full-time

We are seeking an experienced State Lead - Vocational Training to lead the design, implementation, and scale-up of state-level vocational education programmes in schools. The role will work closely with government education departments, skill missions, industry partners, NGOs, and other stakeholders to strengthen vocational pathways, improve student retention and employability, and expand access to relevant life and vocational skills.

The ideal candidate will have extensive experience managing large-scale education or skilling programmes, strong government engagement capabilities, and a deep understanding of vocational education policies, including NEP 2020 and NSQF.

Requirements

Key Responsibilities

Programme Strategy & Implementation

• Analyse state-level education needs, labour-market trends, and student aspirations to develop a comprehensive action plan for expanding vocational education in schools.
• Align state vocational education strategies with national roadmaps, NEP 2020, NSQF, and broader national skills ecosystem reforms.
• Lead the development and implementation of a model vocational education district to demonstrate effective programme approaches.
• Work closely with state education departments to develop guidelines, frameworks, operating procedures, and manuals covering curriculum design, assessment, training delivery, teacher/vocational trainer deployment, and student counselling.
• Support the introduction of dynamic, market-relevant, and aspirational vocational courses aligned with industry requirements and national skill standards.
• Facilitate periodic curriculum reviews based on labour-market assessments and district-level market scans.
• Adapt and implement public awareness initiatives to improve perceptions of vocational education and life skills among students, parents, and communities.
• Strengthen pre-vocational education and career counselling for students in Grades 6-8.
• Support state-level career fairs and employer engagement initiatives in collaboration with industries and skill missions.
• Strengthen monitoring and evaluation systems and state-level MIS to track enrolment, retention, vocational education participation, OJT, internships, and employment outcomes.
• Promote technology-enabled learning, digital content, and data systems to improve programme monitoring, accountability, and decision-making.

Strategic Engagement & Partnerships

• Build and maintain strong partnerships with state government departments, education authorities, skill missions, and other relevant public institutions.
• Establish and strengthen a State Employer Engagement Cell to coordinate with industries, MSMEs, employers, and skilling partners.
• Develop industry partnerships to expand opportunities for on-the-job training, internships, apprenticeships, and employment, particularly for girls.
• Organise CSR roundtables and industry engagement forums to mobilise resources and strengthen vocational education initiatives.
• Collaborate with private-sector organisations, NGOs, civil society organisations, and development agencies to improve programme infrastructure and delivery.
• Facilitate workshops, knowledge-sharing forums, and dissemination events to promote best practices and innovations.

Programme & Project Management

• Lead and mentor a multidisciplinary team while building a culture of collaboration, innovation, accountability, and continuous improvement.
• Manage programme resources, budgets, timelines, and implementation plans to ensure timely delivery and measurable outcomes.
• Track programme milestones, identify implementation risks, and develop proactive mitigation strategies.
• Oversee evidence generation through pilots, cost analyses, research, evaluations, and documentation of successful practices.
• Lead the preparation of high-quality project reports, monthly progress updates, policy briefs, research papers, thought leadership content, and programme documentation.
• Represent the programme at state-level forums, conferences, workshops, and stakeholder meetings.
• Advocate for greater investment in skill-based education, student retention, youth empowerment, gender equality, and initiatives that help reduce barriers to girls’ education and participation.

Qualifications & Experience

• Master’s degree or higher in Education, Social Sciences, Public Policy, Development Studies, or a related discipline.
• 12+ years of experience leading large-scale state-level programmes in education, vocational training, skilling, employability, or student retention.
• Proven experience working with government education departments, skill development missions, civil society organisations, community stakeholders, and development partners.
• Experience working with Samagra Shiksha or state education systems is highly desirable.
• Strong understanding of NEP 2020, NSQF, and national and state frameworks related to vocational education.
• Demonstrated experience designing and implementing gender-responsive education or skilling programmes at scale.
• Strong understanding of socio-economic, cultural, gender, and systemic factors influencing school dropout, student retention, and access to vocational education.
• Experience developing programmes that improve vocational skills, employability, career awareness, and life skills among adolescents.
• Strong commitment to youth empowerment, inclusive education, gender equality, and expanding vocational opportunities for girls.

Key Skills & Competencies

• Strategic leadership and programme management
• Vocational training and education
• State-level government engagement
• Partnership development and stakeholder management
• Programme design and execution
• Data analysis, monitoring, and evaluation
• Policy understanding and implementation
• Team leadership and capacity building
• Strong written and verbal communication
• Evidence-based decision-making
• Budget and resource management
• Ability to manage complex, multi-stakeholder programmes

Must-have skills: Vocational Training, State Lead, Partnerships