Building (and extending) bridges

Cooperation of higher and vocational education through cross-cutting education programmes

It is clear from the example of the information technology (IT) occupations that rising demand for skilled workers cannot be addressed solely with more higher education qualifications, but that differentiated competence profiles are necessary. Additional options are called for, which integrate elements of academic and vocational education and thereby facilitate reciprocal transitions between the different educational sectors.

The "DQR Bridge 5" project is developing cross-cutting education measures at Level 5 of the German Qualifications Framework (DQR), for which credit transfer can be granted within the framework of a regulated continuous vocational education and training and a Bachelor's degree programme.

In order to meet a rising demand for skilled workers, efforts in recent years have been focused on raising the proportion of graduates. Current projections of labour market development show, however, that boosting university graduate numbers alone does not solve the skilled workforce problem; indeed, precisely in the IT sector, high-value vocational qualifications are needed. It is therefore problematic that in the education and training policy discourse, permeability is understood and fostered very one-sidedly: namely by means of new access pathways into higher education for those with vocational qualifications.

This weakens dual education and training. Measures are called for which build bridges between the sectors in both directions so that the permeability achieved is reciprocal, strengthening vocational education and training as a receiving system, too. For this purpose, training offers should be designed so as to be directly transferable towards the desired qualifications in the respective sectors of education and training. They could be placed at Level 5 of the DQR.

DQR Level 5 can offer a promising platform for education and training measures since it can facilitate both the step-through to advanced vocational qualifications, for instance from Certified IT Specialist to IT Professional, as well as access to Bachelor's degree programmes, for instance in Informatics, both at DQR Level 6. Transitions into vocational training for university dropouts can also be facilitated.

To this end, models are being developed in the "DQR Bridge 5" Project for the IT sector 3, among others, which are based on interlocking curricula in vocational and higher education. The DQR serves as a foundation and, equally, as a vehicle for education and training formats of this kind, since it confirms the equivalence of qualifications and makes these transparent and comparable by means of competence descriptions.

The BMBF-funded (BMBF: Federal Ministry of Education and Research) project "Promoting permeability to produce skilled workers – developing cross-cutting education and training measures in higher and vocational education at Level 5 of the DQR (DQR Bridge 5)" (term: Q4 2013 to Q3 2016) is exploring the potentials of Level 5 of the DQR.

In cooperation between vocational education and training providers, chamber organisations and higher education institutions with academic backup, interlocking forms of curricular provision are being developed which are valid for both sectors of education and training - for example as the first tier of upgrading training and also eligible for credit towards a degree, thus support permeability in both directions. The educational and training provision is coupled with advisory measures which are, in turn, being developed and realised across educational sectors by higher and vocational education.