This article was first published in IHK Vocational Education Magazine POSITION III/2023.
 

© DIHK / Werner Schuering

Greater confidence, higher pay, or a more senior role: Those who pursue further professional education always benefit – according to the results of the nationwide IHK survey involving nearly 20,000 employees who successfully completed training in the last five years. "93% of graduates say that vocational education positively impacted their personal development," emphasizes DIHK Deputy Managing Director Achim Dercks. "81% reported positive effects on their careers." Financial improvements (58%) and promotions to roles with increased responsibility (57%) ranked highest among multiple-choice results.

For career-minded individuals, higher vocational training, or more broadly further education, evidently offers tangible opportunities. Do these findings align with the practical experiences of further education providers? Do they match the outcomes of the nationwide survey? Kirstin Aretz, Team Leader for Corporate Training at IHK Bonn/Rhein-Sieg, and her colleagues understand what motivates ambitious individuals while also acknowledging corporate requirements for practical education. Locally, the study’s findings are confirmed: advancing one’s career alongside employment is common practice in higher vocational education.

The Bonn Educational Centre is tailored to the fact that most participants prepare for exams while balancing work and study. As such, preparatory courses are offered exclusively part-time, typically on two evenings per week or sometimes Saturdays. For Kirstin Aretz, the preference for part-time courses is clear: "Our clients find it attractive to attend courses in part-time, allowing them to optimally prepare for exams while working." Nevertheless, the centre also accommodates those who wish to dedicate full time to their qualifications: joint online full-time courses open to interested parties across Germany are offered in collaboration with a partner organisation.

The Growing Skills Shortage

Indeed, much has changed in recent years. While three-quarters of survey respondents said COVID-19 had no negative effect on their professional training behaviour, the pandemic undoubtedly brought changes, as is evident in Bonn. Regarding training formats, online and hybrid formats gained acceptance and relevance due to COVID-19. Currently, the online share for vocational advancement training varies between 5% and 20%, depending on the course. For Kirstin Aretz, this is a welcome addition to the content, as participants' media competence is incidentally improved alongside the curriculum. "Of course, we first trained our tutors for the challenges posed by online teaching," she notes.

Other training programmes at Bonn now also utilise mixed formats, selecting the appropriate delivery mode based on content. "While a team leadership course effectively imparts soft skills in-person, offers on IT and digitalisation are ideally suited for online formats," adds Aretz.

Popular IHK certificate courses favour hybrid schemes: "For example," explains Aretz, "We hold introductory modules in-person to foster relationships and final certificate test modules in-person. Intermediate modules are adapted didactically to be delivered effectively as live online training sessions. Participants can exchange ideas and collaborate through the IHK Online Academy."

The pandemic's impact on training behaviour is evaluated ambivalently by Aretz: While COVID-19 restrictions significantly influenced the willingness of certain individuals to attend seminars, seminar bookings among private individuals remain cautious – particularly amidst financial uncertainty in energy crisis times. Business clients, however, returned to pre-pandemic booking levels, driven by increasing significance of staff development amid the growing skills shortage. "The evident skills shortage motivates companies to qualify their staff further," she reflects.

Study insights locally reaffirm projected qualification needs nationwide per DIHK, particularly in communication, project management, and leadership. Bonner experts observe similar trends across in-house seminars commissioned by firms. For individual bookings, working law, HR, property management, and accounting are booming topics.

Reflecting DIHK study results showing vocational training motivating continued career education resonates locally. "We notice many individuals progress their qualification routes with us," observes Aretz. For instance, participants complete IHK certificate courses, advancing to bachelor’s/master-level IHK professional studies. Some pursue other routes like business administrator ('Betriebswirt/in (IHK)'), especially within economic sectors where advancement opportunities diversify after IHK-certified accomplishments.