Dr Lawrence W Chan

Deputy Executive Director

Vocational Training Council

26 Nov 2014

Promoting Mobility between

Higher Education and

Vocational Education &Training

2

Switzerland

Population in 2013

8.1 M1

Unemployment rate in 2013 (% of total workforce)

3.22

Estimated GDP per capita in 2014 (US$)

84,0002

Number of students joining apprenticeship after completion

of lower-secondary education in 2011

68,0001

Percentage of VET graduates at upper-secondary level who

are eligible to be admitted to an university in 2012

141

Median annual gross income of apprentices in 2013 (US$)

12,5001

Median annual gross income of craftsmen and skills workers

in 2013 (US$)

70,5001

Sources

1: Swiss Federal Statistical Office

2: International Monetary Fund

A Snapshot of Switzerland

The Swiss Dual-Track Education System

Source : Facts and Figures, Vocational and Professional Education and Training in Switzerland 2014, State Secretariat for

Education, Research and Innovation, Switzerland 3

VET as a Share of

Upper-secondary Education, in 2006

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

Percentage of students in school based vocational and technical programmes

Percentage of students in combined school and work-based vocational and technical programmes

Source : OECD (2008c), Education at a Glance, Table C1.1, OECD, Paris. 4

(%)

5

Swiss Dual-track Approach to VET

Two learning components

Theory: classroom instructions at a VET school (1-2 days/week)

Practice: apprenticeship training at the workplace (3-4 days/week)

Two qualifications

2-year Federal VET Certificate

3-4 year Federal VET Diploma

Covers 230 different occupations

6

Swiss Dual-track Approach to VET

Top 5 most popular occupations by newly signed apprenticeship

contracts in 2011

1. Commercial employee

2. Retail employee

3. Health care worker

4. Social care worker

5. Electrician

7

Swiss Federal Vocational

Baccalaureate (FVB)

Serves as a bridge between VET and higher education

Is an optional general education qualification comprising the following

subjects: languages, history and political science, economics/business

administration/law, mathematics, and 2 vocational electives

Can be obtained by attending

Full-time while enrolled in a VET programme at upper-secondary

level

Part-time for 3 to 4 semesters while working

A 1-year full-time preparatory course for the FVB Examination after

graduating from the VET programme

8

Participation Rates of FVB

0.00

2.00

4.00

6.00

8.00

10.00

12.00

14.00

16.00

1994 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

Percentage of VET graduates who also obtained a FVB qualification

Sources : OPET (2009), Facts and Figures. Vocational and Professional Education and Training in Switzerland, OPET, Bern.

Swiss Federal Statistical office 2013

Professional

Education and

Training (PET)

Universities of

Applied Science

(UAS)

Federal

Vocational

Baccalaureate

Academic

Universities

University

Aptitude

Test

Vocational

Education and

Training

General

Education

Schools

Permeability in Swiss Education System

9

Qualifications at Tertiary Level

PET qualifications1 28 200

(23 600 of which are federally regulated)

Federal PET Diploma Examinations 240 examinations

13 100 Federal PET Diplomas issued

Advanced Federal PET Diploma Examinations 170 examinations

3 200 Advanced Federal PET Diploma issued

PET college degree programmes 33 core curricula with a total of 52 areas of

specialisation and over 400 degree programmes

7 300 PET college degrees

Qualifications obtained from UAS, UTEs,

cantonal universities and FITs2

of which at UAS and UTEs

of which at cantonal universities/FITs

37 900 (incl PhDs)

13 200 Diplomas, Bachelors and Masters

24 700 degrees/Diplomas, Bachelors and Masters

and PhDs

1 End-of-year figures 2010 according to Federal Statistical Office (2011a/2011b). 2 End-of-year figures 2009 according to Federal Statistical Office (2011c).

Source : Facts and Figures, Professional Education and Training, Federal Office for Professional Education and Technology (OPET), 2011

Higher Education in Switzerland

Qualifications at Tertiary Level

10

11

Federal PET Examinations

Two levels of PET examinations leading to government-

recognized qualifications

Designed to test the competencies of learners to perform

authentic tasks on the job

Professional organizations responsible for establishing, drafting,

and updating the examination rules

The Swiss Government responsible for conferring federal

recognition upon federal PET examinations, approving

examination rules, supervising examinations and subsidizing 25%

of the examination costs

Preparatory courses available to prepare learners for the PET

Examinations

12

Federal PET Examinations

240 federally-approved examinations

Top 5 most common examinations by

professions in 2010

Police Officer

Human Resources Specialist

Trainer

Technical commercial agent

Marketing Specialist

13

Advanced Federal PET Examination

170 federally-approved examinations

Top 5 most common examinations by

professions in 2010

Job Attendant

Accountant

IT Specialist

Master Electrician

Expert for Accounting and Controlling

14

PET College

Provides tertiary-level training programmes that are federally

recognized

Professional organizations are involved in the preparation of

national training plans and qualification procedures

Full-time programmes last at least two years and 20% of the

study time is devoted to a traineeship

Part-time programmes last at least three years and 50% of the

study time is related to working in a relevant industry

Half of all PET college degrees issued in 2009 were obtained

through part-time studies

Graduates of PET degree programmes may be admitted to a

relevant UAS Bachelor’s degree programme

15

Relative Professional Income by

Education Level in Switzerland

Year Upper-

secondary

VET

Upper-

secondary

General

PET

University &

UAS

2000 1.27 1.21 1.65 1.89

2001 1.32 1.21 1.78 1.98

2002 1.27 1.24 1.69 1.97

2003 1.3 1.25 1.71 1.98

2004 1.3 1.21 1.68 1.95

2005 1.27 1.23 1.67 1.92

2006 1.28 1.25 1.7 1.95

2007 1.27 1.22 1.71 1.94

Index (1 = no post-compulsory education)

Source: Swiss Labour Force Survey, FSO

16

Experiences Learnt from

the Swiss VET/PET Model

Partnership between government and private sector is paramount

to the success of the dual-track system

Smooth transition from VET/PET to higher education helps promote

the appeal of VET/PET to prospective students and their parents

Involvement of state, local government, and professional

organisations in quality assurance and development of system

through legislation

Establishment of a legal framework for VET system that covers

250 occupations

Occupational profile

Training content

Competency of workers

Maximum number of trainees

Qualification procedures

f

Year 2

Year 1

Junior S1 – S3

Senior S6

Senior S5

Senior S4

Year 3

Year 4 Year 4

Year 3

Year 2

Year 1

Year 1

Diploma in Vocational

Education (DVE)

Bachelor’s / Master’s Degree

VTC / Other VET Providers UGC-funded Universities

1-year

Foundation Diploma (FD) / Yi

Jin Diploma (YJD)

QF L5

QF L3 Diploma of Secondary Education (DSE)

Po

st-s

ec

on

da

ry

an

d

Hig

he

r E

du

ca

tion

Ju

nio

r a

nd

S

en

ior

Se

co

nd

ar

y

QF L5

QF

L4

QF L3

Associate Degree(AD) Higher Diploma(HD)

Year 2

Bachelor’s Degree Bachelor’s Degree

Year 1

Year 2

Year 1

THEi

Senior Years / Top-up

Hong Kong Education System

17

Year 3

Year 2

Year 1

“Mainstream education is not a straightjacket that fits all young people as everyone has his or her own interests and abilities. The Government should re-establish the positioning of vocational education in our education system and guide the younger generation in choosing their career”

18

The Chief Executive’s Policy

Address 2014

19

Earn and Learn Scheme

Tripartite collaboration among the

government, industry and training

providers

Through-train study pathway up to Higher

Diploma and Degree levels

Provision of financial incentives to

encourage young people joining industries

with a keen labour demand

Industry allowance

Guaranteed salary

Government allowance

Industry Allowance $30,800

1 year (full-time)

3 years (part-time)

3 years (part-time)

3 years (part-time)

Secondary 3

Gov’t Monthly Allowance

$ 1,500 (2nd year) $2,000 (3rd year) $2,500 (4th year)

Monthly Salary

$8,000 (2nd year) $8,000 (3rd year) $8,000 (4th year)

Dip in Vocational Education

(DVE) QF L3

Higher Diploma

QF L4

Degree QF L5

Minimum Monthly Salary

$10,500 $12,000 $17,000

Earn and Learn Scheme

20

21

Bridging the Gap between VET and Higher

Education in Hong Kong

(Pre-employment)

Currently less than 5% of the Secondary 3 graduates join VET

while the rest continue with the academic education

VET graduates at upper-secondary level

are not eligible to directly apply for

university admission

A vocational baccalaureate programme

could be an attractive alternative for

secondary school students who aspire to

pursue university education but are not

interested in academic education at upper-

secondary level

Essential features of a vocational baccalaureate programme:

Balanced mix of vocational and general education contents

Pedagogy based on innovative approaches such as contextual

learning, problem-solving, interactive e-learning, augmented

reality training

Flexible curriculum and programme structure catered to

the learning needs of a diverse group of students

22

Bridging the Gap between VET

and Higher Education in Hong Kong

(Pre-employment)

0

10

20

30

40

50

L1 L2 L3 L4 L5

15-24

(0.33 M)

25-39

(1.44 M)

>=40

(2.03 M)

QF and

above

Note – The number inside each bracket denotes the size of the population within the sector.

Source: Quarterly Report on General Household Survey July to Sept 2012 Census and Statistics Department, HKSAR

(%)

Educational Attainment of HK

Labour Force by Age Group in 2012

23

24

Hong Kong Qualifications Framework

Officially launched on 5 May 2008

Supports life-long learning

Qualifications are accredited

Qualifications are level-rated, with use of

credit size and appropriate qualification

titles

Education and training market – better

regulated, more transparent

Facilitate planning of learning pathways

and inter-institutional collaborations

25

Recognition of Prior Learning

Enable experienced employees

to receive formal recognition of

the knowledge, skills and

experience already acquired

Help determine the starting point

for learning and progression,

thus reduce duplication in training

for the same skills

Quality-assured – RPL mechanism is administered by qualified

Assessment Agency

Launched in 9 industries, with over 11,000 RPL holders and

over 20,000 Statements of Attainment issued

University

Bachelor’s Degree

QF(L5)

Vocational Institute

Higher Diploma

QF(L4)

VET Provider

Professional Diploma/Certificate

QF(L4)

Assessment Agency

Recognition of Prior Learning, QF(L4),

leading to Certificate of Competency

VTC

Vocational Assessments,

Trade Tests

Ad

ult

Lea

rner

s

Com

pete

nt

Para-p

rofe

ssio

nal

in a

Desi

gn

ate

d O

ccu

pati

on

Bridging the Gap between VET and

Higher Education in Hong Kong

(In-service)

26

27

Competency Requirements of a Qualified

Professional in the Property Management Industry

Occupation : Senior Property Officer

Job Descriptions : Undertake building security work, manage facilities and

equipment, handle emergency cases, human resources

management and customer services management

Competency Requirements Related Units of

Competency

RPL

Qualifications

Execute the management of building security tasks PMZZEM401A

Security

Operational

Work

(Level 4)

Manage the handling of emergency situations PMZZEM402A

Monitor and improve the conditions of private road

control and environmental protection of a building

PMZZEM406A

Monitor the use of carpark and loading area PMZZFM403A

Manpower planning and training for staff within the

property managed

PMZZHR401A

Customer service management PMZZHR404A

28

Competency Requirements of a Qualified

Professional in the Property Management Industry

(Cont’d)

Competency Requirements Related Units of

Competency

RPL

Qualifications

Promote staff awareness of keeping the building

environment safe

PMZZEM403A

Master knowledge of jurisdiction in relation to

property management cases in order to handle

legal matters

PMZZLW401A

Handle financial income and expenses PMZZFN401A

Lead the team in the provision of quality property

management service

PMZZHR402A

Occupational safety and health management in a

property management environment

PMZZHR403A

Professional Diploma in

a recognized programme

offered by an accredited

VET Provider plus a

prescribed period of

relevant work experience

Certificate of

Competency issued

by Assessment

Agency through

Recognition of Prior

Learning

mechanism

Enhancing the Mobility of Practitioners in

Property Management Industry – An Illustration

Meeting the qualification

requirements for a Senior Property Officer

Higher Diploma in a

recognized

programmed offered

by an accredited

Vocational Institute

plus a prescribed

period of relevant

work experience

29

30

Success Factors in Mobility Enhancement

Industry should define the competency requirements

of an occupation based on the Specifications of

Competency Standard of a given trade

Training providers should work with industry to ensure

their programmes meeting the manpower

requirements

Assessment agencies should work with industry to

ensure that the required competencies for an

occupation can be adequately assessed through RPL

mechanism

31

THANK YOU