Tapping job market reserves by partial qualifications

In order to tap in future also such potential as was hitherto not in the limelight for the job market, the Association of German Chambers of Industry and Commerce (DIHK) now plans to put to the test the application and examination of partial qualifications by way of model projects.

The idea is to thus mobilise, for instance, young adults without professional qualification or women who, after a longer period of absence from the job market, wish to revitalise their career.

The pilot programme is scheduled for a period of three years, will be launched in spring and will use model projects to test the acquisition of partial qualifications. With these projects, the DIHK will on the one hand ensure the quality of corresponding educational measures and, on the other, the participants will be examined by the IHKs themselves.

However, the classical, integrated method of vocational education and training within the dual system "must not be put at risk", emphasised Esther Hartwich, Head of Department Vocational Education and Training at the DIHK. Rather, she thinks it is important to open up new ways for the tailored qualification of hitherto neglected target groups, with full concentration on rendering the participants fit for the job market and on their acquiring a professional qualification at a later stage.

Whether this approach proves successful in practice will be revealed by spring 2016. The evaluation results then will provide the basis for decisions regarding further action.