Conference

Motivating companies to engage in dual VET – lessons learned from international experiences with cost and benefit analysis

Madrid, 28 November 2019 | Brussels, 10 December 2019

Many countries, grappling with shortages of skilled workers and high youth unemployment, are in the process of reforming their vocational education systems. A significant number of these countries have turned their attention to the dual apprenticeship system, where young people follow an in-company apprenticeship and a school-based education as part of the same curriculum. The introduction of this kind of training highly depends on the willingness of companies to engage in training. But under what conditions is it worthwhile for companies to engage in training from an economic perspective? This question arises not only in countries that are considering introducing a dual training model, but also in those with already existing dual training systems. 

In recent years, the renowned education economist Prof. Dr. Stefan C. Wolter has investigated in several countries how the costs and benefits of training develop from the point of view of companies under different political environments. General conclusions can be drawn from these studies, regarding for example the duration of training, the remuneration of apprentices or the relationship between theory and practice, in order to guarantee high-quality training on the one hand and to make training attractive from a company perspective on the other. On behalf of the JP Morgan Chase Foundation and the Bertelsmann Stiftung, Stefan Wolter has formulated these general conclusions in a discussion paper.

The "lessons learned" will be presented by Stefan Wolter and discussed at two conferences in Madrid and Brussels.