Helem Nejse Talent Academy was an all-encompassing, hands-on program that immersed participants in every facet of modern game development. The course began with an exploration of the evolution of video games, tracing their journey from simple pixelated classics to the complex, immersive AAA titles of today. This historical context helped deepen understanding of current industry trends and technologies. Participants engaged in detailed studies of game design principles, including level design, mechanics, user experience, and AI integration to create intelligent, responsive game environments. Cutting-edge technologies like Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) were introduced, allowing students to experiment with new ways of player interaction and immersion. The academy also emphasized audio production, covering music sampling, sound mixing, and how to effectively implement audio assets to elevate game atmosphere and emotional impact. On the visual side, students learned about character design, animation techniques, environmental art, and cinematic storytelling to craft compelling game worlds and narratives. Narrative design was a major focus, with deep dives into storytelling frameworks such as the Hero’s Journey, different types of character arcs including positive and tragic, and exploring a variety of genres like comedy, horror, and action. This helped students understand how to weave engaging stories that resonate with players. Technical skills were developed through hands-on work with multiple game engines including Unity, Unreal Engine, and Godot, giving participants a broad toolkit adaptable to different project types. Networking opportunities were a key component, connecting students with indie developers, small studios, and even AAA industry professionals to foster collaboration and career growth. Beyond the technical and creative, the academy included critical thinking panels and group discussions that challenged students to analyze industry challenges and innovate solutions. The experience culminated in a game jam where students applied their skills to design, develop, and present fully functional games under realistic constraints, preparing them thoroughly for professional game development environments.

This comprehensive training united board members from Local BEST Groups across Mostar, Niš, Novi Sad, Zagreb, and Skopje with the goal of strengthening leadership, collaboration, and organizational skills. A core focus was on team dynamics, where participants were divided into small groups tasked with moving a paper frog through a maze under unique constraints. Each team member was assigned to move the frog in only one direction, and only one member could navigate it over a ladder. The challenge culminated in a no-communication round, testing non-verbal coordination and trust. Our team, Team Butterfree, mastered this by carefully timing finger movements, communicating through subtle gestures, and completing the maze in under three seconds - an impressive testament to synergy and mutual understanding. The feedback training introduced effective methods for delivering constructive criticism, with special emphasis on the 'sandwich method' - starting with positive feedback, followed by areas of improvement, and ending on a positive note. This approach encourages open, empathetic dialogue, reduces defensiveness, and fosters a growth mindset within teams. Additionally, participants practiced giving and receiving feedback in real scenarios, building confidence and emotional intelligence. Non-violent communication (NVC) was another key component, focusing on expressing oneself honestly and listening empathetically. Through role-playing and reflective exercises, attendees learned to identify feelings and needs behind words, avoid blame, and create mutual respect - crucial skills for resolving conflicts and maintaining healthy team environments. Delegation workshops explored when and how to assign tasks effectively. Participants learned to evaluate team members' strengths, workload, and motivation, and understood that delegation is not just task distribution but also empowering others. This training underscored the importance of clear instructions, follow-up, and balancing control with trust to optimize productivity. Accountability sessions distinguished between responsibility - the duties assigned to someone - and accountability, which is owning the outcome of those duties. Using a practical scale exercise, attendees gained insight into holding themselves and others accountable without blame, fostering transparency and trust within organizations. Fundraising modules equipped participants with strategies to secure resources sustainably. Topics included crafting compelling proposals, identifying potential donors, organizing events, and leveraging social networks. The training emphasized aligning fundraising efforts with organizational goals and ethical considerations. Finally, problem-solving workshops provided frameworks and creative techniques such as brainstorming, root cause analysis, and decision matrices. Participants practiced applying these tools to real-world challenges, enhancing their ability to think critically and collaborate effectively under pressure. Held in Niš, this training was a pivotal experience that deepened regional collaboration, empowered future leaders, and prepared attendees to lead diverse teams and complex projects within BEST and beyond.

This workshop provided an in-depth focus on C# programming within the .NET framework, with a strong emphasis on database-driven application development. Participants learned how to connect applications to databases efficiently, managing complex data structures across multiple linked tables. Core CRUD operations — creating, reading, updating, and deleting records — were practiced extensively to handle real-world data management scenarios. Additionally, the course covered advanced data sorting and filtering techniques to ensure optimized data retrieval and manipulation. Attendees also learned how to generate comprehensive reports and maintain detailed logs to support audit trails and application monitoring. The practical nature of the workshop helped participants develop the skills necessary to build robust, scalable business applications using C# and .NET technologies.

Comprehensive hands-on training covering essential GitHub functionalities and workflows. The workshop began with the basics of version control, including how to pull, push, commit, and fetch code changes effectively. Participants learned how to manage branches, merge updates, and confidently resolve merge conflicts, ensuring smooth collaboration within teams. The course also explored advanced collaboration tools such as adding collaborators to repositories, managing organizations and teams, and setting up permissions. An exciting part of the workshop involved creating and customizing GitHub Profile READMEs (using tools like GPRM), helping attendees showcase their projects and skills professionally. Additionally, participants earned GitHub achievements, motivating them to adopt best practices in software development and teamwork.

This intensive course provided practical training in fundamental aspects of cybersecurity. We covered various types of cyber attacks such as phishing, malware, ransomware, and social engineering, learning how to recognize and mitigate these threats. The curriculum included essential concepts like hashing and encryption algorithms to secure data and communications. We also explored network security principles, including firewall configurations, intrusion detection systems, and safe browsing habits to protect against unauthorized access. Throughout the course, emphasis was placed on understanding real-world attack scenarios and applying best practices for online safety and risk management.

This intensive course was centered on 3D game development using Unity and C#. Throughout the program, we built a strong foundation in programming gameplay mechanics, designing enemy behavior, and creating intuitive UI elements like enemy health bars to enhance player interaction. A standout feature of the course was learning procedural level generation - where we took 2D maze-like maps and transformed them into immersive 3D worlds, gaining hands-on experience with spatial design and environment creation. Beyond coding, we delved deeply into the artistic and sensory aspects of game development. We integrated dynamic animations to bring characters and environments to life, used sound effects (SFX) to provide responsive audio feedback, and layered visual effects (VFX) to heighten the atmosphere and impact of in-game events. Music composition and placement were also emphasized, teaching us how to set tone and mood effectively, making the gameplay more engaging and immersive. The course culminated in a practical final project: developing a fully functional Bomberman-style game that combined all these elements cohesively, showcasing our understanding of both the technical and creative sides of game creation.

This comprehensive course covered all key aspects of social media management and digital marketing. We learned how to craft effective posts for various platforms including Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn, tailoring content to each audience. The course included hands-on training with Canva to create engaging images and stories, as well as building and managing WordPress websites and writing professional blogs. We explored strategies for social media advertising across platforms, learning how to create, manage, and optimize ads to boost engagement and reach. One of the major highlights was a final exam project where we developed a full presentation for a new business idea, complete with a variety of social media content formats such as single images, carousel posts, and targeted ad campaigns. This practical approach ensured a solid understanding of content creation, audience engagement, and digital marketing strategies.

Comprehensive introduction to C++ programming, covering fundamental concepts and practical coding techniques. The course began with basics such as variables, data types, control structures, and progressed into functions, including declaration (prototypes) and definitions separated from the main function. We explored strings, arrays of various types, pointers, pointers to arrays, and arrays of pointers, along with input/output operations using standard streams. This course emphasized writing clean, modular code and built a strong foundation for further software development.

Focused on building a solid foundation in English grammar, vocabulary, and conversational skills. The course covered all major verb tenses, sentence structure, and basic communication techniques to help students understand and use everyday English effectively.

Comprehensive training covering Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, focusing on both basic and advanced features to enhance productivity and professional document creation. In Word, we learned formatting techniques, styles, tables, and integrating charts. Excel sessions included advanced functions like VLOOKUP, pivot tables, conditional formatting, and data analysis tools. PowerPoint training emphasized creating dynamic presentations using zoom sections, animations, transitions, and integrating multimedia. A key part of the course was learning to seamlessly integrate these applications, such as importing Excel charts into Word documents and PowerPoint slides, ensuring consistency and efficiency in reports and presentations.

In-depth training focused on essential soft skills including time management, teamwork, leadership, stress management, and effective communication. Time management techniques covered prioritization methods like the Eisenhower matrix, Pomodoro technique, and goal setting to improve productivity and reduce procrastination. Stress management included mindfulness practices, breathing exercises, and strategies for maintaining work-life balance to enhance mental resilience. Effective communication training emphasized active listening, clear verbal and non-verbal cues, constructive feedback, and conflict resolution to foster better collaboration. Leadership sessions explored different leadership styles, motivating teams, decision-making under pressure, and fostering a positive work environment. Teamwork training highlighted collaboration skills, role clarity, trust-building exercises, and managing diverse personalities to achieve common goals efficiently.

Comprehensive training focused on entrepreneurship, business management, and strategic planning. Covered the fundamentals of starting and running a successful startup, including ideation, market research, and business model development. Explored different types of business structures such as sole proprietorships, partnerships, and corporations, with pros and cons of each. Emphasized practical skills like budgeting, financial forecasting, and resource allocation. Included lessons on leadership in business, team building, and effective communication with stakeholders. Strategic planning sessions taught setting clear business goals, competitive analysis, risk management, and adapting to market changes to ensure sustainable growth.

An upcoming hands-on training focused on core frontend and backend web development skills. Participants will learn fundamentals of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, alongside practical experience with modern tools like Vite for frontend development. Backend technologies will also be introduced to provide a complete understanding of web app creation, preparing attendees for full-stack projects.

This intensive online course provided a thorough introduction to Python programming, beginning with core fundamentals such as syntax, data types, control structures, functions, and object-oriented programming. Emphasis was placed on writing clean, efficient code and understanding best practices. Building on the basics, the course introduced essential libraries and tools for data analysis, including NumPy and Pandas, enabling manipulation and processing of datasets with ease. Practical exercises covered data cleaning, transformation, and exploratory data analysis techniques. Further, the course delved into machine learning fundamentals, where concepts like supervised and unsupervised learning, model training, evaluation metrics, and common algorithms (e.g., linear regression, decision trees) were studied. Hands-on projects allowed applying these methods using libraries such as Scikit-learn, fostering an understanding of real-world data challenges and predictive modeling. The course also covered visualization tools like Matplotlib and Seaborn, teaching how to create insightful charts and graphs to effectively communicate data findings. Additionally, participants explored basic concepts in natural language processing and neural networks to broaden their knowledge scope. Overall, the course combined theory with practical coding assignments, quizzes, and projects, equipping participants with a strong foundation in Python programming, data science workflows, and introductory machine learning techniques, all through a flexible online learning environment.