Advanced Vocational Training and Bachelor's Degree Programs in the Mirror of German Company Preferences

• In Event: Competition or Complementarity Between Academic and Vocational Education? Status Quo, Challenges, and Future Perspectives

Abstract

The implementation of the so-called Bologna-Reform, with bachelor’s and master’s degrees, introduced a new aspect to the German education system, because until then an initial vocational qualification within approximately three years’ time could only be acquired in the (dual) vocational training system and not within higher education. According to the European Qualifications Framework, both bachelor's degrees and advanced training (e.g. master craftsman, technician, and business economist) qualify for comparable areas of activity and responsibilities. Therefore, the fear was expressed that the attractiveness of the vocational sector in Germany could be jeopardized (e.g. Deissinger 2015). However, it is so far unexplored to what extent these changes - initiated by education policy - influenced the recruitment preferences of companies.
Previous research (e.g., Hippach-Schneider et al. 2012; Bahl et al. 2011, Elsholz, Jaich, Neu 2018) suggested that while both training paths lead to upper-level skilled positions (e.g., project management), their respective promotion prospects differ by industry and occupation. However, it remains unclear how these differences can be explained and how companies decide when they can actually choose between applicants with different qualification paths.
In my presentation, I present the results of two quantitative, causal-analytical studies on firms' hiring preferences (Maier/Steeg 2019, Maier/Mergener/Steeg 2020). These show that individuals with advanced training and bachelor's degrees compete for project management positions. It turns out that in this context, the specific technical job or the company's industry is less decisive. The company's preference for an applicant is primarily determined by its training strategy. If companies support academic qualifications, they are inclined to favor people with academic qualifications over those with advanced vocational training when it comes to filling project management positions. For young people who opt for dual training followed by advanced training, career opportunities are more likely to arise in companies that explicitly focus only on the vocational qualification path.
Disclosing the determinants for specific training strategies of German companies, I will discuss why companies prefer to not engage in training, engage only in vocational training or also academic training. The results of the quantitative in-depth analysis also show what kind of changes in training strategies of German companies we might expect in the future.

References

Altbach, Philip/Reisberg, Liz/De Wit, Hans (eds.): Responding to Massification. Differentiation in Post-secondary Education Worldwide. Rotterdam 2017
Cantwell, Brendan/Marginson, Simon/Smolentseva, Anna (eds.): High Participation Systems of Higher Education. Oxford 2018
Deissinger, T.: International education policy: Its influence on the conception of VET and the VET system in Germany. Research in Comparative & International Education 10(4), 607-621 (2015)
Guri-Rosenblit, Sarah/Sebkova, Helena/Teichler, Ulrich: Massification and Diversity of Higher Education Systems: Interplay of Complex Dimensions. Paris 2007
Hippach-Schneider, U., Weigel, T., Gonon, P.: Are graduates preferred to those completing initial vocational education and training? Case studies on company recruitment strategies in Germany, England and Switzerland. Journal of Vocational Education & Training 65(1), 1-17 (2012)
Marginson, Simon: The worldwide trend to high participation higher education: dynamics of social stratification in inclusive systems. In: Higher Education 72 (2016), S. 413-434

Author

• Tobias Maier