Political Context and Adolescent Refugees' Vocational Education and Training Following Secondary School

• In Event: Gender, Race, and Movement: Multi-age Youth Crossing Borders and Divides

Abstract

Heightened migration to Germany from predominately Middle Eastern countries between 2015 and 2021 was accompanied by increased public support for far-right, anti-immigrant political groups like the Alternative for Germany. This is despite Germany’s increasing reliance on immigrants to fill gaps in its labor market. Understanding the challenges that adolescent immigrants face when transitioning from secondary school into vocational education and training is crucial given that both the socio-economic integration of these individuals and the economic competitiveness of their host country depend on their gainful employment. Using data on 394 adolescent refugees living in Germany who recently left secondary school, I explore how the regional political context in which they live is linked to their (postponed) labor market entry.

Author

• Benjamin Korman, Leibniz Institute for Educational Trajectories