Purpose: This study seeks to show whether workplace experience (WE) in an apprenticeship programme affects the duration of joblessness amongst recent university graduates and to determine the antecedents that support a workplace well-being experience during an apprenticeship programme. Additionally, the research introduces the moderating effect of…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to provide a comprehensive description and analysis of quality levels with regard to dual Vocational Education and Training (VET) at companies participating in this programme in Spain, with a specific focus on company size. Design/methodology/approach: The study is based on a quantitative cross-sectional…

The objective of this study is to analyse the contribution of students of vocational education and training (VET) to the innovation processes of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) during their apprenticeships. Qualitative research was conducted through in-depth interviews with 97 respondents in Catalonia, including VET teachers and…

This article explores the interface between lifelong learning policies and the definition of social vulnerability of young adults in two regions located within the European Union. Girona comprises a constellation of small towns with important industry, service and hospitality sectors. Vienna is a global city where many key international operators…

This paper examines the adoption of dual VET in Spain as a process of educational policy transfer. Using Phillips and Ochs' (2003, 2004) policy transfer spectrum and decision-making classification and Perry and Tor's (2008) model of transfer forms, the study relies on semi-structured interviews with key decision-makers in the Spanish central…

This article analyzes the motives for firms providing apprenticeship training in Catalonia and the reasons why other firms do not provide such training. In light of the recent introduction of dual apprenticeships in the formal education system in Spain, a country with a traditionally school-based vocational education and training (VET) system,…

This paper builds on the history of Esbrina, an established research group in Spain with almost 20 years' experience and a deeply-rooted tradition of self-reflection and learning. We start by analysing the academic and social contexts in which the group was created and recognised. We make explicit team members' backgrounds, dispositions and…

This article examines cross-country variations in adult skills inequality and asks why skills in Anglophone countries are so unequal. Drawing on the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's recent Survey of Adult Skills and other surveys, it investigates the differences across countries and country groups in inequality in both…