Vocational training and academic education at eye level

A new study on behalf of the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology compares vocational training and academic education in respect to quality management and labour market potentials and underlines that they are of equal value.

The study shows not only the high quality of vocational training, but also the complex and extensive quality management of the training institutions in the vocational training sector. In both sectors, more and more institutional quality management systems are being established which guarantee continuous quality improvements. According to the authors it is neither possible nor necessary for each sector to adapt to the historically evolved quality management systems of the other.

Researchers agree that both academic and vocational training make a major contribution to employability. High income no longer depends on an academic degree. Actual work tasks form the basis of standard wages and salaries. In many jobs, qualified employees from both sectors can be equally successful. The interchangeability of both careers should thus be increased.