FOREIGN EXPERIENCE OF BORDER GUARDS’ PROFESSIONAL TRAINING IN THE REPUBLIC OF ESTONIA AND THE SLOVAK REPUBLIC

The article presents the foreign experience of border guards’ professional training in the Republic of Estonia and the Slovak Republic. It has been established that the professional training of border guards in these countries is fully complied with the European model of training of law enforcement officers. A number of common and distinctive features of the professional training of border guards of these countries have been defined. In both countries, the first level of training is ensuring the basic and specialized secondary education in secondary vocational educational institutions. In Estonia, training lasts continuously for 1.6 years, in Slovakia basic training lasts for 10-12 months and specialized training lasts for 4 months. Upon completion of the educational program, applicants receive a Certificate of Complete Secondary Vocational Education (ISCED Level 4A – Complete Secondary Vocational Education) and Specialized Police Education (Level 4). The second and third levels of the training of future border guard officers are bachelor’s and master’s studies, respectively. The first level of higher professional education in Estonia (the so-called “higher professional education”) is provided to future border guards at the Police and Border Guard College, which is a part of the Academy of Security Sciences, the second level is at the Institute of Internal Security, which is also an organizational component of the Academy. There is no border guard specialization at the second level of higher education in the Republic of Estonia (ER). In Slovakia, higher education is provided at the Academy of the Police Corps in Bratislava. The term of study and the amount of study at the bachelor’s and master’s level in educational institutions of both countries are the same. Curricula consist of three blocks of educational disciplines: compulsory, compulsory professional or optional. After completing the training, the students take state exams and defend their qualification papers and receive, respectively, the 5th and 6th level of professional qualification, which is defined by the professional standard of the EU border guard service. Throughout the entire service, border guards of the above-mentioned countries are provided with the opportunity for professional development by attending trainings, retraining courses, and specialized courses organized on the basis of police training schools and colleges, or by studying at other departmental educational institutions. In order to occupy certain positions, it is necessary to take certain courses, including leadership, language, etc.