A surprising phenomenon of more young adults opt for vocational training rather than university education has been observed in serveral regions across the globe. The following paragraphs outline the benefits and drawbacks of this situation.
From the perspective of youngsters, one of the advantages of choosing work-based training instead of attending university allow them to hone professional skills for a living. According to a research from Harvard University, there has been a growing population of unemployed university graduates as they do not possess a specific wage-earning skill. On the other hand, graudates from vocational schools reported a higher employment rate and above-average income. For young people, it is only natural for them to pick a future with higher income. From the perspective of the society, skilled workmen are insufficient, a report from local media highlighted the lack of plumbers have led to over 35% of damaged public facilities unattended. By training more future workmen, the gap could be sealed and provide better services to public overall.
While the benefits seem appartent, there are several disadvantages caused by high-school graduates’ decision. For young people themselves, universities encourage the use of logical reasoning and critical thinking. In this everchanging society, the public are often trapped with misinformation across media. A research by Oxford University showed that university graudates are 70% less likely to be misguided by fake news compared to those without university education. This could be detrimental to the society if the majority lack skills to think crictically about the information they receive, as conflicts may spike around, leading to an inharmonic community.
To conclude, while choosing for job-based schools may guarantee a better salary for young people; as well as filling vacancies of workmen in the community. The disadvantage of not receiving critical thinking training outweights the advantages, both from the students’ and society’s point of view.