Vocational Qualifications

[Tobias_Reece]

(Could have posted this as a poll, but decided not to)

 

What does everyone think of vocational qualifications? What do you think the benefits of vocational qualies are compared to academic - and vica versa.

 

Any feedback would be appriciated.

 

Cheers

[moobrack]

Hi Tobias,

 

At school i am taking a GNVQ - which is the same thing but on a different level. for example you are doing field work as part (majority) of your VQ - where as a lot of my work is done inside school. There are three different levels of VQ

 

Part One

 

Part Two

 

Part Three

 

Part Three is the one to go for - it is a higher qualification than Part One.

 

I believe that the benefits entailed in VQ's are an extended and a preliminary understanding of life at work and life in a workplace - and also being taught how to do your job correctly rather than going to work without a clue - or making mistakes. I am not implying that mistakes arent to be made - but if they are made in VQ's it is not without learning from them majorly.

 

The disadvantages of VQ's is that you spend less time learning full time and more time working. This can be a let down to some VQ candidates, but they are mainly the ones who take the course/s without knowing a lot about them.

 

Just my two cents

 

Thanx

[ZR440]

From my own experience and observations of others, having equal parts of both during high school is most beneficial if you seek a career in the technical world. One will understand the concepts and how to apply them by the time they go to college. Too often one area is stressed more than the other, and what you get is a cubicle engineer that can't change the oil in their own car. Or conversely, you have the best technician in the country, but they can't explain how they fixed it. Academics are extremely important, but don't be afraid to get your hands dirty either.