Training market undergoing serious change

Interest shown in vocational education and training in the dual system by individuals with higher education entrance qualifications has continued to rise over recent years. More people now start training with higher education entrance qualifications than with lower secondary school leaving certificates. The number of training positions which companies, practices and government organisations are unable to fill has also increased over time; this is now 48,900 and has almost tripled since 2009 (17,600). These are the findings of the 2018 Data Report of the Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (BIBB) which was adopted today by the German Federal cabinet and which supplements the Vocational Training Report 2018. The thematic focus of the current BIBB data report is vocational orientation.

The BIBB Data Report for the Report on Vocational Education and Training celebrates its 10th anniversary this year. “Since the very beginning, the Data Report has contributed significantly to the improved understanding of developments in the area of vocational education and training. The positive response from social partners and policy-makers, and from practice and academia demonstrates that it has developed into a key information tool,” explained BIBB President Friedrich Hubert Esser. “Given the increasing rate of change in initial and continuing vocational education and training, the Data Report’s ongoing annual analysis and long term monitoring and time series are more important than ever.”

It is true – a look back at the first issue of the Data Report shows that, in just a few years, the challenges faced in the area of education and training policy making have changed fundamentally. At the end of the last decade, it were issues such as a shortage of training positions, lack of readiness for training and entry into the transition sector which were predominant in the BIBB Data Report, whereas today current issues are the shortage of trainees, matching problems, and vocational orientation.

Accordingly, the thematic focus of this year’s Data Report provides articles covering, for example, the institutional organisation of vocational orientation, the behaviour of young people when selecting an occupation, and aspects which constitute and support good vocational orientation. This is because, without the increased numbers and without more young people with higher-level school leaving qualifications embracing the full range of training occupations – currently 326 in total – it will be virtually impossible to solve the matching problems on the training market. In particular, trainee positions in typical lower secondary school leaver occupations are affected by problems with filling positions, especially since applicants with higher-level school leaving certificates who do not manage to achieve their dream position – such as in commercial media and IT occupations – still find it difficult to consider these training occupations. According to the Data Report analyses, this is why unsuccessful applicants include increasing numbers of individuals with higher education entrance qualifications.

A provisional version of the BIBB Data Report to accompany the 2018 Report on Vocational Education and Training can be downloaded free of charge from www.bibb.de/datenreport-2018 (in German only). The print version is likely to be available from July onwards.

The Federal Government's 2018 Report on Vocational Education and Training can be accessed at https://www.bmbf.de/de/berufsbildungsbericht-2740.html (in German only).

Image material is available at www.bibb.de/pressefotos.

Specimen copy requested if printed.