Why a greater focus needs to be placed on training once again

When today's school leavers are asked what they want to do once they finish school, more than half are likely to give responses such as, "I'm off to university once I have finished my upper secondary school leaving certificate" or "After intermediate secondary school, I'll do a specialist upper secondary certificate and then study for a degree."

This is a trend that is becoming increasingly more apparent and is already creating negative consequences for the German labour market and for many companies providing training. How can dual training be made an object of greater focus once more?

Over the past few years, there have been considerable changes in the numbers of higher education entrants. Whereas just under 345,000 young people commenced a course of higher education study in the year 2006/2007, the corresponding figure for the academic year 2016/2017 had risen to just shy of 508,000. One possible reason for this rise could be the current widespread notion that a higher education degree is a must in order to be successful in today's world of work.

Every time the academic year begins, there are regular reports in the media about overfilled lecture halls and support staff who are overwhelmed and unable to cope with the mass of new students. At the same time, however, the ratio of students dropping out of higher education has also increased. More than a third of degree course entrants discontinue their studies over the course of time and then seek to go in a new direction. The most frequent reasons stated are underestimation of requirements, pressure to perform, and poor marks.

The vocational education and training sector does not have these problems to contend with. The situation here is completely contrary. Because ever more school leavers prefer higher education study to conventional vocational training, increasing numbers of apprenticeship places are remaining vacant. Smaller and medium-sized companies in particular are regularly finding it a challenge to recruit trainees to the positions they have available. The consequence of this is that the companies affected begin to row back on the provision of training, that is to say they no longer offer training at all or reduce the number of places.

Over the past few years, the trend towards academisation has been exerting a strong effect on the labour market and the economy. The talk is already of a shortage of skilled workers. Companies are no longer able to find suitable staff to fill vacancies. Meanwhile, many higher education graduates are unable to find the kind of job they originally wished to secure. The most common reasons for this are a lack of practical experience or the absence of a requirement for management staff in certain sectors.

But why do so many young people decide to enter a course of higher education study to which they are not equal rather than opting for a training occupation? Is company-based training not attractive enough? Or is it simply the case that school leavers do not possess sufficiently sophisticated knowledge on the topic of training?

Particularly at upper secondary schools, it is possible time and again to observe how final year pupils are pushed in the direction of higher education study. No detailed training and vocational orientation is usually given since it is clear that pupils will gravitate towards higher education in any case. Evidence for the incorrectness of this way of thinking is available in the form of the numbers of higher education drop-outs. Not everyone is automatically suited to degree level studies just because he or she has obtained an upper secondary school leaving certificate. Also wrong is the prevailing belief that a training qualification does not offer good chances of advancement with a later employer.

Again, the contrary applies. A training qualification opens up a wealth of opportunities because the amount of continuing training provision available is enormous. Training as a business economist, technician or master craftsman makes it perfectly possible to attain higher positions within a company. The combination of professional experience and a programme of advanced training are comparable to a higher education degree.

Companies would be well advised to mention in training place advertisements that it is possible to proceed to continuing training upon completion of initial training. Such an approach would also appeal to ambitious school leavers. Especially in the case of occupations to which it is hard to recruit, it is advisable to illustrate the chances and opportunities that would be available to pupils after company-based training. This would provide trainees with a clearer idea of the training process and of the subsequent development pathway open to them. Perhaps trainees will even arrive at the realisation that higher education study is not necessary for the position to which they aspire. Attractive training allowances and additional benefits can also help to make dual training more interesting.

Those who have completed training enjoy good opportunities on the labour market. As already mentioned at the start of the article, companies are already starting to feel the shortage of skilled workers. The retail trade and technical companies in the private sector economy are desperately seeking new skilled workers. Completion of training in one of these areas thus provides young talent with a secure job as well as offering a host of options on the labour market.

It is also the case that training is not merely suited to those with a lower or intermediate secondary school leaving certificate. The right kind of dual training is now available for every kind of school qualification. Training places for industrial clerks or event managers frequently go to young people with an upper secondary school leaving certificate. Even if a programme of vocational education and training stipulates a lower level of prior learning as the entry prerequisite, pupils in possession of an upper secondary school leaving certificate can still apply and may even reap the benefit of being able to complete training in a shorter period of time.

Upper secondary school leavers may, for example, take two years to finish a course of training that is normally of three years’ duration and thus obtain an early opportunity to enter the world of work as a skilled worker.