One of the primary missions of universities is to train future professionals, and this goal is not solely achieved through traditional teaching. Learning is often more enduring and profound when students engage in thinking, doing, and experimenting. This objective can be realized through an educational model known as Working Life Connected (WLC) project education. This model is based on Laurea University of Applied Sciences’ pedagogical approach, Learning by Developing (LbD). LbD involves authentic collaboration between the working life, students, and lecturers, where students tackle real-life development tasks, and lecturers support their skill development through coaching guidance.

Coaching guidance is a goal-oriented, insightful process in which, within a higher education environment, a student’s resources and strengths are harnessed to help them to find their own solutions. The aim is to support the student’s self-esteem, ability to identify opportunities, and find solutions. Coaching focuses on what the student wants to achieve, and the actions required to reach those goals. A lecturer as a coach does not solve the student’s challenges for them but supports them through insightful questions, active listening, challenging their assumptions, and reinforcing their belief in success.

This research article examines how the coaching training for lecturers achieved its goals as part of the HEIComp project. HEIComp (“Bridging the gap between students’ competences and working life needs”) is a European Union-funded initiative aimed at bringing higher education students closer to the job market. As part of the HEIComp teaching method training, higher education lecturers from Brazil and Paraguay were trained to work as coaches in WLC) projects.

The theoretical background of this article includes coaching guidance and the WLC project teaching methods. The target group of the study consists of Universidad Autónoma de Encarnación (UNAE) lecturers who coached their students for the first time in WLC projects assigned by companies. The research questions of this qualitative study were: 1) How do lecturers adopt the new role of a teacher as a coach? 2) How do lecturers master coaching teaching methods that enhance learning in WLC projects studies? The study was conducted in the fall of 2024, with the participation of eight lecturers from UNAE.

The main result of the study shows that lecturers enhance their coaching skills through WLC projects. This is evident in evaluations highlighting aspects such as “students’ autonomy”, “decision making”, “accompaniment”, “trust”, “teamwork” and “patience”. Lecturers demonstrate proficiency in coaching teaching methods aimed at fostering students’ critical and problem-solving skills on the part of students. Lecturers achieve this by asking insightful questions, providing useful feedback, and engaging in active listening, which are essential for adapting and being flexible in a dynamic context, much like in real working life.

In conclusion, WLC projects promote the professional growth of both lecturers and students. Adopting the mindset and pedagogy of coaching guidance requires the lecturer to have various abilities to integrate them into the training. A successful transition from traditional teaching to coaching in the WLC project necessitates continuous teaching training. Such training is crucial for the lecturer’s personal and professional development, contributing to high-quality education.

Keywords: Coaching Guidance, Coaching Skills, Working Life Connected Project, Quality Education.