Creation of opportunities for self-realization of youth and solution of youth problems are priority policy areas for many states. The development of work with young people requires new innovative solutions and approaches. These are imposed by threats and challenges of a global nature, internal state interests, as well as changes in the characteristics of young people and their value orientations. The process of training professional youth workers varies from country to country, as do the functions of these specialists. The existing regulatory frameworks define national objectives for youth workers. Still, such specialists should be active in the international space, understand international problems and trends and be able to build cooperation. The purpose of this article is to identify the potential of international cooperation in training youth workers. The authors analyse the process of training youth work specialists, taking into account the following features: 1) the features of the youth audience: changing pace of life, value orientations and professional orientations of young people; types of interpersonal communication, development of personal qualities, expectations, intentions and readiness for future creative life activities; 2) results of the process: competencies that are formed in the process of training specialists from different countries. They show the learning objectives and professional areas of work most accurately; 3) the content of the training process: use of modern and innovative educational technologies in both educational and extracurricular activities; principles implemented in the training of specialists; 4) the system of cooperation with the authorities of youth policy at the regional and national levels; 5) the current system of international cooperation in the training process; 6) the need to create and intensify the activity of young people in the process of obtaining additional professional skills, development of personal qualities, implemented by both the state and the non-profit sector. The potential for international cooperation, both in the training of specialists and in the organization of their work, is not sufficiently used at present. The tendency to change for the better can be seen at the same time. Currently, the number of international educational resources, projects and training programs is increasing. International forums and conferences on youth topics are held. However, this activity is not systematic. There is no single information resource that contains information about the potential of different countries in the area of professionalization of youth workers. The article will present an analysis of the experience of Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Bulgaria, Spain and Serbia on the training of specialist youth workers, including opportunities for self-development, self-education and professional development. In conclusion, the authors stress the necessity to actively cooperate in youth work specialist training at the interstate level, deepening professional training in particular.
