Is Dual VET a Differentiating Factor in Firm-School Relationships? Evidence From the Basque Country

Abstract

Context: The relationship which firms and schools establish around compulsory student internships is a key aspect of the Spanish vocational education system. The introduction of extended student internships (the so-called "dual Vocational Education and Training" or "dual VET") in recent years has received considerable attention. Whereas some authors have pointed out at positive results in terms of academic results and employability, others indicate that important challenges remain regarding formalisation of the in-company curriculum and diversity of student internship experiences. Most of recent studies look at education agents, and there is a need of further evidence coming from the firms. In particular, limited attention has been paid so far at the comparison between standard and extended ("dual") internship experiences. 

Approach: A survey-based quantitative study has been carried out with a sample of 254 industrial Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) from the Basque Country (Northern Spain). The questionnaire looks at different aspects of the relationships which firms and schools develop around student internships, as experienced by the companies: Motives for receiving students, implementation of the internships, and outcomes. Special attention is paid to the impact of dual VET on firm-school relationships. 

Results: The evidence gathered shows that firms and schools have developed rich, reciprocal relationships around student internships (both standard and dual). Firms having experience of dual VET have a more intense relationship with schools in aspects such as training in competencies needed by the firm, selection and supervision of students, frequency and depth of communication with the school tutor, organisational width of the intern student experience, use of the training contract, better knowledge of the school curriculum, and hiring the student after graduation. However, other variables, related to the innovative culture of the firm, exert also a wide influence on the relationship in aspects like student selection and integration in the firm, long-term view of training (affecting all employees in the organisation), participation in intern student evaluation, formalisation of student training plans and contribution to the quality of the school curriculum. 

Conclusion: The key message emerging from the study is that dual VET has an effect on the intensity of firm-school relationships, but that it does not alter radically the character of the relationship which had been established before, based on standard student internships. Along with the dual experience, the innovative culture of the firm also has an important effect on the relationships.