With modern professions into the new training year

For many vocational school students, the new school year begins with one new and 15 modernised occupations requiring vocational training to choose from, the training regulations of which became effective on August 1, 2011.

Modern occupations reflecting the operational demands of businesses make a major contribution towards safeguarding the innovation capability and hence the international competitiveness of the German economy. In formulating the new framework curricula, the Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs has paid attention to designing them in such a way as to ensure professional mobility and to enable qualified schooling in the proximity of the vocational training placement.

This is important in particular with regard to the new regulations for construction professions, such as technical product designer, and with regard to the vocational training course of media technologist, yet applies also to the three traditional occupations requiring vocational training within the textile trade – embroiderer, knitter and weaver – which were further developed to form the modern occupational profile of textile designer.

With the continuing modernisation of the framework curricula for occupational teaching at vocational schools, the Federal State Ministries of Education and Cultural Affairs contribute towards providing the German economy with qualified specialists. Since the introduction of the learning segment concept of the Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs in 1997, about 270 framework curricula for occupations requiring dual system vocational training were newly developed, thus creating a modern basis for the schooling element of these occupations requiring vocational training.

At the same time, some of the occupations were modernised more than once during this period and completely new, contemporary occupations were also created. The multitude of new regulations illustrates how complex the professional landscape is in Germany and how many specialised professionals are necessary in maintaining the high level of quality of German crafts and trade, both as regards production and commerce. Even so, it remains a major concern for the Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs to consolidate the number of occupations requiring vocational training in an overview of occupational groups and to harmonise the training content with the aim of increasing the apprentices’ mobility within a changing economic world and commodity range and to be able to warrant appropriate vocational training close to home.