On the non-standard routes: vocational training measures in the school-to-work transitions of lower-qualified youth in Germany

Abstract

This study explores school-to-work transitions in Germany, aiming to achieve a richer understanding of the complexity of labour market entry trajectories while focusing on transition measures. The term transition measures refers to additional training courses that complement the regular vocational education and training system of firm-based or school-based qualification routes. The contribution of supplementary training measures to the school-to-work transitions of young adults is a controversial issue. While programmes aim to ease the transitions of low-skilled youth in the training and labour market, critics point to the risks of long-term subsidised careers or fragmented employment trajectories in subsequent years. By applying sequence analysis to administrative data of the Federal Employment Agency, individual trajectories of a cohort of school leavers with an at-most intermediate school-leaving certificate are analysed for the period 2008 to 2014. The results show a complex picture of ten distinct school-to-work transition patterns. Youth passing through transition measures tend to experience a less continuous but still purposeful transition pathway. We also identify a small number of youth experiencing at-risk trajectories characterised by a highly discontinuous transition process, which points to sustained detachment from the training and labour markets.

Educational Aspirations and Attainments : How resources relate to outcomes for children of immigrants in disadvantaged Swedish schools

“…Like previous studies, I also found gender to be a major predictor of school leavers' school-to-work trajectories (Achatz, Jahn, and Schels 2020;Dorsett and Lucchino 2014;Struffolino and Borgna 2020). In fact, gender was the single most important predictor of being in the career trajectory cluster, making the career trajectory a predominantly male, and non-migrant trajectory.…”

“…In the public discourse, early school leaving is currently seen as a large problem -both for the individual and for the economy at large (Ross and Leathwood 2013;European Commission 2010). Research, on the other hand, has emphasized that many early school leavers find ways to succeed, but that there are systematic differences depending on factors such as migration background and parental resources (Schoon and Duckworth 2010;Achatz, Jahn, and Schels 2020;Dorsett and Lucchino 2014).…”

New Zealand’s 1989 skill ecosystem reform: preparations, implementation, outputs and outcomes

“…A major challenge in skills deployment is the transition from school to work. Programs that promote labour market deployment directly seem to have the highest returns than those that address skills development (OECD, 2010, Achatz et al,2020. Though, the impact is higher among disadvantaged young people (Musset & Kurekova, 2018).…”

Immigration Background and Differences in School-to- work Trajectories of Early School Leavers

“…This pattern is especially pronounced among persons with working-class background (Legewie & DiPrete 2012). That said, the gender norms around education might make it harder for female early school leavers to find work -especially because jobs that do not require an upper secondary diploma are typically male-dominated (Albaek et al 2015;Achatz et al 2020). Because of this, I expect male early school leavers to more often be in workoriented trajectories than female early school leavers.…”

“…Previous studies on early school leavers or young people with low educational quali fications also report similar patterns. Young people with an immigrant background and those with well-educated parents tend to be in more education-oriented trajectories as opposed to more work-oriented trajectories (Dorsett & Lucchino 2014;Achatz et al 2020). Parents' labor-market attachment, on the other hand, is generally not found to be a major influence.…”