Take a vocational route (From Harrow Times)

Take a vocational route

5:22pm Wednesday 18th March 2009 in

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Forget letters after their name, British parents are rooting for vocational qualifications to recession proof their kids’ employment chances.

Research by independent education foundation, Edge, finds that while the economy has taken a downturn, the value of vocational qualifications ‘career currency’ has increased – with more than four fifths of parents of 11-19 year olds (81 per cent) now believing it’s important for their child to have a vocational qualification.

Of these, three-quarters (74 per cent) of parents said it will make their child more employable, get a job quicker (40 per cent), earn a better pay packet (26 per cent) and generally be more recession proof (20 per cent).

Plus one in four (25 per cent) think it will put their offspring in a better position to be their own boss.

And topping the entrepreneurial career charts for the country’s parents in order of ranking is IT, followed by marketing in second place, and catering/hospitality, finance and insurance in joint third.

In the current climate, with stiff competition for jobs, one in three parents (33 per cent) said they would be less nervous about their child’s employment prospects if they had a vocational qualification to their name.

The research identifies a sea change in attitude among the county’s parents with one in ten admitting it has made them less of an academic snob in the current climate.

Edge is dedicated to raising the status of practical and vocational learning and believes ‘learning by doing’ is as important as academic learning, and that there are many paths to success.

Chief executive Andy Powell comments: “Parents have traditionally pushed their child down an academic path without taking into account their unique abilities and preferences.

“Vocational qualifications have been seen as the ‘poor cousin’ of the education world which is why it is so encouraging that more parents are finally recognising the strength of their ‘career currency’ and the fact that there are many different paths to success including apprenticeships.”

Apprenticeships in particular get a vote of confidence from parents.

More than one in four (27 per cent) revealed that they have or will advise their child to take their first step onto the career ladder with an apprenticeship with 77 per cent recognising the opportunity they provide to gain real experience in the workplace.

Edge is encouraging parents with children unsure of the range of options available to them to direct them to www.edge.co.uk/knowyouroptions.co.uk