… as countries prioritise vocational education to enhance human capacity
Over 40 per cent of students in upper secondary schools are enrolled in vocational education and training (VET) programmes across Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries.
However, the report indicates that there are wide variations between countries, ranging from less than 25 per cent of students in Japan and Korea to more than 70 per cent in the Czech Republic and Slovenia.
According to a recent report, “Education paths are growing more flexible. On average, almost three-quarters of upper secondary vocational students are in programmes that theoretically allow them to enter tertiary education directly.
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Usually, this is at a short-cycle tertiary level but in about two-thirds of countries with available data, graduates from upper secondary vocational programmes can go straight into bachelor’s or equivalent programmes.”
The report further shows that around 30 per cent of all students in upper secondary vocational education are enrolled in combined school- and work-based programmes on average across the OECD.
However, wider participation in these programmes providing labour-market advantages is only the case in some countries. While in Denmark, Hungary, Ireland, and Latvia all VET students are in combined programmes, in 10 out of 26 countries with available data, this is the case for less than one-fifth of students.
On average across OECD countries, the average age of graduation from upper secondary education is higher for students in vocational education (22.4 years) than for students enrolled in general education (18.5 years).
Also, the average VET graduate’s age varies in a large range of ages between countries, from more than 33 years old in New Zealand to 16 years old in Colombia.
In 2021 women made up around 45 percent of vocational upper-secondary graduates, with wide variations across sectors and occupations.
At the post-secondary non-tertiary level, around 37 per cent of students graduating from vocational programmes were women, on average across OECD countries.
Socioeconomically disadvantaged students are more likely to be enrolled in vocational tracks than advantaged students, although the likelihood reduces from 4.3 to almost three after accounting for student performance.
On average across OECD, almost 20 per cent of disadvantaged students are enrolled in VET programmes compared to less than eight per cent of advantaged students.
Moreover, the report states that adults aged 25 to 64 with only a vocational upper secondary or post-secondary non-tertiary education have lower levels of unemployment (five per cent OECD average) than those with only a general upper secondary (six per cent OECD average).
For the younger adults, in 2022 this trend is also true: while 6.5 per cent of 25-34-year-olds with a VET upper secondary education are unemployed, this is the case for eight per cent of young adults with a general education.
“The most common form of participation in adult learning is non-formal education and training, mostly job-related. Slightly more than one in ten 25-64 year-olds participate in non-formal education and training on average across OECD and accession countries with a four-week reference period, of which almost 80 per cent have engaged in at least one job-related learning activity,” OECD report stated.
