Wichtiger Hinweis
Student survey on career and study orientation measures
Stand: 20.01.2025
The transition from school to work poses a number of challenges for teenagers and young adults. They have to make a sensible choice from a wide range of possible careers that suits their personal wishes and abilities.
At the same time, the labor market, the technical requirements and the skills needed for professions are changing. Against this background, the Education Office, together with the City of Erlangen's Department of Statistics and Urban Research, conducted a student survey on the topic of "Career and study orientation measures in Erlangen" at secondary schools in Erlangen. The results should help to optimize individual career and study orientation measures in Erlangen and support schools in transferring and optimizing the results into their overall concept. The central research questions were:
- How transparent is the careers and study orientation system for pupils?
- How do pupils rate the career and study orientation measures in Erlangen and individual components thereof?
- To what extent are there starting points for optimizing career and study orientation?
- What kind of information about careers or courses of study do pupils need or want? Which channels should ideally be used to provide this information?
The report deals with the following topics:
1 The survey
1.1 Relevance
1.2 Objectives and research questions
1.3 Survey content
1.4 Target group, survey mode and time period
1.5 Realized sample
2 Results
2.1 Educational aspirations and plans after leaving school
2.2 Transparency/information about training and study opportunities
2.3 Awareness and evaluation of the VO measures
3 Conclusion and prospects
4 Appendices
You can download the complete report here.
Report on student survey on career and study orientation measures in Erlangen
report_student_survey_bo_2024
report_student_survey_bo_2024
Central results
The target group for the survey was 2,357 pupils in the year groups in which the majority of career guidance measures are carried out at the respective school types. These are the 9th and 10th grades of Erlangen's Mittelschulen, Realschulen and Wirtschaftsschule, the 11th grades of Erlangen's Gymnasien and the 11th and 12th grades of Erlangen's Fachober- und Berufsoberschule (FOS/BOS). A total of 467 students took part in the survey, which corresponds to an overall response rate of around 20%. The response rate differs significantly in some cases between the different types of school: the response rate at secondary schools is 56% (n=219), at intermediate schools and business schools 11% (n=88), at grammar schools 21% (n=123) and at FOS/BOS 5% (n=37).
Many parents want their child to graduate - regardless of which school they currently attend. For parents of high school students, vocational training is not an option they want for their child.
Overall, many students face major challenges and difficulties in the transition from school to work. Insecurities and fears of choosing the wrong profession play the biggest role. Particularly from the perspective of the secondary school and business school students and grammar school students surveyed, school does not adequately prepare them for the transition from school to work. The grammar school students surveyed in particular feel poorly informed about vocational training opportunities after school.
The students surveyed see the greatest difficulties in making the wrong career decision (Figure 1): a total of 41% of the students surveyed are afraid of making the wrong career decision. This fear is greatest among the grammar school students surveyed (53%). In addition, students from all types of schools (37% overall), but especially the grammar school students surveyed (48%), have difficulties finding a career that suits them.
Figure 1: Difficulties in choosing career options after school by type of school
The pupils surveyed would like to be informed about careers and studies primarily in class and in personal discussions (e.g. teachers) as well as in personal exchanges with professionals from the profession and other trainees or students. Digital formats and social media are hardly mentioned (Figure 2).
Figure 2: Desire for information channels on school, career and studies by type of school
Figure 3 shows the results of the students' assessment of individual measures as mean values. In response to the question, "It is difficult to decide what you want to do after school. Continue at school, do an apprenticeship, study or work. How much did the offer ... help you?" the pupils were able to answer on a scale of 4="very much", 3="a lot", 2="a little", 1="not at all".
Overall, measures with a practical approach were rated particularly positively: The opportunity to do an internship lasting several days was rated highest by the students surveyed with a mean score of 3.0 (see Figure 3). Visits to companies and universities (mean score of 2.9), advice and support from JAZ e.V. (mean score of 2.8) and job application training (mean score of 2.7) were also rated above average. Measures such as the visit to the BIZ in Fürth (mean value of 2.0), personal careers advice at the job center (mean value of 2.1) or the test to find out about one's own strengths and interests (mean value of 2.1) were rated comparatively poorly.
Figure 3: Evaluation of individual VO measures - presentation sorted by mean value
One point of criticism that is negative for several measures is the content of VO measures. Students frequently criticized the fact that their interests were not taken into account in the measures. In the case of measures with a practical focus, if anything was criticized, it was that the activities were too one-sided or that there was too little practical experience. Another point of criticism, which was mainly mentioned by students from secondary schools, business schools and grammar schools, was the lack of follow-up work on the measures in class.