Programa del congreso

This study analyzes the impact of technical and vocational education on the employability of university graduates, considering their perception of integration and entry into the labor market during the period 2021–2024. Regarding the methodological approach, the study followed a positivist quantitative paradigm, with a non-experimental, field-based, and descriptive design. A total of 493 graduates from various academic programs across three universities in two countries were surveyed—specifically, from Ecuador: ITB and UBE; and from Venezuela: ULAC. Data were collected using a questionnaire with items distributed across three dimensions: quality of technical education, pre-professional practices, and technical experience and job placement. The findings reveal a significant gap between the education received and the realities of the labor market, highlighting the urgent need for institutions to redesign content and practices, increase resources, and adjust their educational offerings for more effective alignment.

TikTok has emerged as a transformative platform in shaping consumer behavior, influencing how users interact with brands and make purchasing decisions. Its algorithm-driven content, short video format, and interactive features have redefined marketing strategies while generating new challenges for understanding consumption in different contexts. This study aimed to explore how TikTok influences consumption patterns among university students in Honduras, identifying how the platform conditions decision-making processes, perceptions of brands, and ethical reflections related to its use. A qualitative, descriptive, and cross-sectional design was applied, using focus groups as the main data collection method. Transcriptions were analyzed through thematic coding in NVivo 14, complemented by visual tools such as word clouds, heatmaps, and hierarchical clustering to detect conceptual relationships. Findings reveal that students frequently rely on TikTok to discover products, engage with influencers, and participate in trends, often leading to impulsive purchases. While the platform facilitates product discovery and engagement, risks related to misinformation, algorithmic manipulation, and privacy were also identified. The results demonstrate that TikTok functions both as a driver of consumption and as a laboratory for entrepreneurial innovation.

STEM education faces the challenge of going beyond technical development to include competencies that prepare students for complex and changing work environments. This article presents the ACDEA (Applied Experiential Learning, Co-Creation and Didactics) platform, a methodological proposal that integrates gamification, entrepreneurial thinking, and the co-creation of educational experiences by students. Through a methodological structure based on four phases, the proposal seeks to transform the roles of teachers and students, strengthen commitment to learning and generate reusable and scalable pedagogical resources.