training
Northwest can still catch up when it comes to dual courses
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Combining theory and practice, gaining early insights into the world of work in addition to basic academic knowledge – that is the idea of a dual course of study combining university and company. The extent to which such offers are developed and perceived varies greatly from region to region.
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According to an evaluation by the Center for Higher Education Development (CHE), Lower Saxony and Bremen have some catching up to do when it comes to combining study and vocational training. The proportion of dual study courses in all study programs was well below the national average of 9.6 percent in both states last year. For Lower Saxony, the CHE, which is supported by the University Rectors’ Conference and the Bertelsmann Foundation, together with the Research Institute for Business Education, determined 7.0 percent. In Bremen, the value was only 5.0 percent.
At bachelor level there were even more dual study options than at the higher master level – the latter was recently not represented at all in Bremen’s dual university system. The authors pointed out that the existing offers vary greatly by region and subject. In absolute figures, the Lower Saxony providers recorded a total of 109 dual courses of study in 2021, in Bremen there were 14. For Bavaria, for example, a total of 529 programs were reported, with a share of 19 percent of the entire range of courses.
The data on the demand is a little older, it refers to the year 2019. Saarland stands out here with a share of almost 30 percent of the students who were enrolled in dual programs. In Bremen it was 0.6 percent – the last place among all federal states. Lower Saxony came in eighth with 3.4 percent.
The number of courses on offer that include academic as well as training or long practical phases in the company has grown in recent years. However, the summary of the analysis also states: “However, with an average student share of 4.2 percent nationwide and a freshman share of currently 4.6 percent, the dual study program in Germany continues to have a marginal existence.” In health, medicine and nursing, for example, even more attractive combined courses could be created.
The basic idea of such models is an intensive dovetailing of theory and practice – companies also hope in this way to bring qualified young people into the company in times of increasing shortage of skilled workers. However, the study also shows that “despite a generally high level of satisfaction” among the students, many have already considered changing their training company or subject.
Some critics also complain that some mixed courses result in specialization that is too early and too narrow in terms of content, which can affect basic knowledge. IG Metall boss Jörg Hofmann also sees this problem in certain areas of classic dual vocational training. “We have good prerequisites where others envy us,” he said recently. But for many new jobs, clearer, overarching foundations would have to be created – also and especially in the case of dual courses of study, where there is “endless growth” and the division into more and more small subjects is becoming increasingly confusing.
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