The State Secretary at the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, Matthias Machnig, has met industry, union and trade association representatives for a summit talk.
According to the cabinet-approved Vocational Education and Training Report 2015, the number of unfilled apprenticeship placements has reached a record high in the past year. The Association of German Chambers of Industry and Commerce (DIHK) therefore recommends instruments such as 'assisted apprenticeships'.
Achim Dercks, Deputy Managing Director of the Association of German Chambers of Industry and Commerce (DIHK), regards the further development of the 'European Alliance for Apprenticeship' as planned by the European Commission as indispensable for promoting youth employment in Europe.
The German Chancellor promotes shortened vocational education and training periods for university drop-outs. Together with Federal Education Minister Wanka, she acquainted herself with the successful vocational education and training project 'Switch' at a company in Aachen. It is set to be implemented throughout Germany.
More than half of all school graduates, that is, 522,000 young people started an apprenticeship in the dual system in 2014. The situation in the apprenticeship market has slightly improved. Yet Ministers Wanka and Nahles say that more young people have to be placed in apprenticeships faster.
Dual study courses were created as a form of educational provision offering both an academic and a practical vocational qualification. The coupling of competence acquisition in both higher education and practical company-based contexts is aimed at supporting learning transfer and hence achieving a benefit over purely academic or purely hands-on forms of initial vocational training. There is, however, a lack of clear criteria for describing this duality.
