Overcoming the stigma of VET

Vocational education and training (VET) has long been surrounded by negative perceptions. In a recent “What if” paper, VOCEDplus discusses what would happen if we could overcome these negative perceptions.

The paper notes that societal perceptions of VET are influenced by a variety of factors, including the terminology surrounding vocational training versus higher education. VET is recognised as “applied learning” or “trade”, while higher education is perceived as “theoretical”.

According to the paper, the dominating preference for higher education stems from the view that a degree leads to a higher paid job. This also creates a negative impact on how students view a career pathway through VET.

“Employment prospects and income after training appear to be at the forefront of these ideas, also perceptions of opportunities for career advancement and, significantly, prevailing social or cultural beliefs, especially the views held by family members (Cedefop, 2014).”

This negative attitude can convince students, parents, teachers and counsellors to avoid exploring VET pathways.

Yet a national survey held in 2017 revealed VET graduates earn a comparable wage to university graduates.

Globally, governments and VET providers are attempting to reduce the stigma through a variety of strategies. This will also help ease the labour shortage that many countries face in traditional “trade” sectors.

Some of the strategies employed include quality improvement and assurance, highlighting the diverse programs available, and marketing campaigns to showcase the benefits of VET.

Longer term, governments and institutes are:

• Investing in quality and structural improvement (such as improving student facilities)
• Offering financial incentives like the JobTrainer program in Australia
• Providing information provision and career guidance to school leavers, parents, guidance counsellors and teachers
• Introducing marketing campaigns and rebranding courses
• Developing skills competitions such as Worldskills to raise the perception of VET.

While there is limited data to evaluate the success of these strategies, the research paper highlights that “a coordinated effort between all stakeholders is needed” to overcome the stigma.

The full paper is available to read here.