Bright prospects for graduates of dual courses of study: In a company survey conducted by the Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (BIBB), 45 per cent of the enterprises indicated they would hire all dual system students in their firms once they had completed their studies.
Another 27 per cent would hire about three-quarters of the dual system students successfully trained in their firms. The BIBB had polled a total of more than 1,400 enterprises about the development of the qualification requirements of the enterprises, the quality of the dual courses of study offered and the utility of the certificates acquired.
The evaluation of dual courses of study by the companies was extremely positive. About 97 per cent of the enterprises polled were "highly satisfied" or "satisfied" with that instrument for training new skilled employees. About two-thirds indicated that the dual courses of study were "considerably better" or "better" than classical courses of study.
Emphasis was placed in particular on the "good knowledge of company processes", the "ability to work independently" and the "high degree of self-motivation" that in the opinion of the enterprises distinguished the dual system students from their fellow applicants.
To BIBB President Friedrich Hubert Esser the results impressively demonstrate the extent to which dual courses of study are now accepted by the private sector as a possibility of training highly qualified skilled workers for their own needs. "The high hiring rates are evidence of the great value the companies place on dual courses of study. Enterprises that offer this attractive form of training have clear advantages in the competition for the top talent."
Dual courses of study link initial vocational training with university, technical college or vocational college studies. Thus in the best case scenario the graduates acquire two certificates: one vocational and the other academic. They thus go through a particularly innovative, attractive and practice-oriented form of studies offering them further advantages.
Examples of these are direct theory-to-practice transfer and the support received from the employer - often in the form of training pay or the payment of tuition fees.
The BIBB's "AusbildungPlus" database provides an overview of dual courses of study and training opportunities that is unique in the Federal Republic. The number of dual courses of study offered in particular has increased enormously in the last few years.
The rate of increase in 2011, for example, was about 20 per cent and in the previous year it was 12 per cent. There was an especially sharp increase in 2011 in the number of cooperation arrangements under which enterprises offered dual courses of study jointly with universities (+46 per cent).
In the field of training opportunities with supplementary qualifications as well, the BIBB database has registered a consistent large supply and steadily increasing demand on the part of trainees. The acceptance level for this form of training among the enterprises polled was also high. It is used mostly for the vocational specialisation of the adolescents and young adults.
The company survey showed that trainees significantly improve their chances in the labour market through supplementary qualifications as well.