Vocational education qualifications’ roles in pathways to work in liberal market economies

Abstract

The links between vocational qualifications and occupational destinations are weak in many Anglophone countries, even though the explicit purpose of vocational qualifications is to prepare individuals for occupations. Using Australia and Canada as case studies, this is explained at three levels of analysis: at the national level by systems of skill formation and student transition; at the meso level by skill ecosystems; and by whether qualifications are used as a signal in regulated occupations or as a screen in unregulated occupations. The paper outlines three roles for qualifications in providing pathways to enter and progress in work, transition to higher level studies, and support social mobility. The paper concludes that improving links between postsecondary qualifications and occupations depends more on the structure of the labour market than on the nature of qualifications: it is mainly an issue of the demand for qualifications rather than their supply.

Keywords:

• Vocational education & training
• VET and the labour market
• comparative VET
• policy issues: learning in life & work transitions

Notes

1. While the term ‘qualifications’ is used widely in many countries, it is used less in the U.S.A and Canada, where term ‘credentials’ is more widely used.

2. The Conservative Australian Government defunded the industry sector skills councils in 2015, and implemented a ‘contestable model’ to develop Australia’s vocational education qualifications, which are called ‘training packages’. See https://www.education.gov.au/industry-skills-councils.

3. Australia has enrolled nurses who are trained in vocational education institutions and require a diploma to qualify for entry to the occupation; and registered nurses who require a baccalaureate degree, usually from a university, or from another registered higher education institution.

4. Drilling down into this broad category shows that in 2014, 91% of apprentices graduating from ‘electrotechnology and telecommunications trades’ were employed in their field, as were 90% of ‘construction workers’, 88% of ‘automotive and engineering trades workers’, and 83% in ‘food trades workers’ (chefs, butchers etc.) (Wibrow 2014: Support Document, Table 1). While the text above uses 2015 data, this footnote uses 2014 data because 2015 data are not available at this level of detail.

5. Notwithstanding the different purposes of the two sectors, the Ontario Government still wants pathways from colleges to universities, and has invested in the Ontario Council for Articulation and Transfer to facilitate their development, but this is a modern ‘overlay’ over the existing structures (Ministry of Training Colleges and Universities 2011).

6. The reference is a report from Statistics Canada, and Statistics Canada does not generally differentiate between qualification levels in colleges in reporting on postsecondary education – for example, between certificates, diplomas and advanced diplomas. However, qualifications at International Standard Classification of Education level 5B, which is classified as short-cycle higher education, is the predominant qualification offered in Canada’s colleges and diplomas and associate degrees are ISCED 5B qualifications. See Statistics Canada (2014a: Chart A.1.1). See OECD (2012) for relative proportions of adults with 5A and 5B type qualifications, and Chart A8.2 for differences in wage levels of graduates by qualification level.

7. We are grateful to one of the external reviewers for sharpening this point up for us.