Employers: 'Young People Need Better Career Advice!'

By Career Savvy

A recent survey of over 1,000 employers has discovered that 83% believe young people should have higher quality career advice than what is currently on offer to them. The survey, which was carried out by Skills and Guild and the Edge Foundation, also found that… 
 

• 60% of employers feel that the government doesn’t do enough to support vocational qualifications and skills training
• 72% said vocational qualifications are essential for preparing young people for the world of work
• 53% placed a higher value on vocational qualifications than academic achievements.

The news comes after recent figures were released showing a large increase in the number of apprenticeships started in 2012/13, which is sure to be music to the ears of government officials who recently announced plans to introduce tougher, high-quality apprenticeships in a bid to increase their participation levels.

Are vocational qualifications more important than academic achievements?

There is a growing school of thought that many young people may be better served by completing an apprenticeship rather than going to university, something which is supported by recent YouGov findings that over half of employers felt university graduates were not prepared for the world of work- a subject we blogged about a while back. Apprenticeships aim to provide young people with workplace-specific skills that ease the transition from studying to working, so you can understand why the majority of employers in the survey valued them over academic qualifications.

Although completing an apprenticeship will certainly be beneficial for your career development in certain sector, it’s worth remembering that a degree with relevant work experience still gives you the golden ticket to get into plenty of other fields- but young people still require good quality career help to decide which option is best for them.

Should young people be receiving better career help?

This isn’t the first time that the issue has cropped up. We’ve written about it relentlessly in the past, and it seems that young people really are getting a raw deal when it comes to career advice- with 83% of employers agreeing.

What’s the solution?

The government appear to be making efforts to alleviate the problem with the increased emphasis placed upon apprenticeships. By making young people aware that there are options beyond university, they are going some way to improving the overall standard of career help available to young people.

But it’s important that young people continue to be aware of all of their options after leaving school, college or university- because this lack of direction could lead to a stunt in many young people’s career development. In turn this could ultimately leave them unprepared for the world of work.