Vocational education

Vocational education (or Vocational Education and Training (VET)) prepares learners for careers or professions that are traditionally non-academic and directly related to a trade, occupation or 'vocation' in which the learner participates.

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Vocational education is in most cases a form of secondary or post-secondary education. In some cases, vocational education can contribute towards a tertiary education at a university as academic credit however, it is rarely considered in its own form to fall under the traditional definition of a higher education.

Related Topics:
Secondary - Post-secondary education - Tertiary education - University - Higher education

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Up until the end of the twentieth century, vocational education focused on trades (for example, automobile mechanic or welder), and was therefore associated with the activities of lower social classes. As a consequence, it attracted a level of stigma. Vocational education is related to the age-old apprenticeship system of learning.

Related Topics:
Social class - Apprenticeship

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However, as the labour market becomes more specialised and economies are demanding more skills, governments and business are increasingly investing in the future of vocational education through publicy funded training organisations and subsidised apprenticeship or traineeship initiatives for businesses. At the post-secondary level vocational education is typically provided by an institute of technology, or by a local community college.

Related Topics:
Apprenticeship - Traineeship - Institute of technology - Community college

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Vocational education has diversified over the last century and now exists in industries such as retail, tourism, IT, funeral services and cosmetics, as well as in the traditional crafts.

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