What is Ikaslan?

Ikaslan is the association of public Vocational Education centers in the Basque Country, and in the case of Ikaslan Bizkaia, it consists of 28 centers. In 2021 we celebrate 25 years of work to promote collaboration between our centers and the companies around us, and in recent years one of our focuses has been promoting international projects with other European VET institutions. In addition, we offer services to citizens and our students, such as the IkasEmplegu job bag or the IkasGida orientation service, and we are constantly developing initiatives to make the training offer and VET options available to potential students and people who seek lifelong education at AMPAS.

What will be the future of VET?

The future of VET is Dual, that's the first thing. And we're not talking about a long-term goal. As I said before, the Basque Government has set the target of 2026 to carry out all VET in this modality, and it has already demonstrated that it has very high job placement data, over 60%. Also, the future VET will be more flexible and will allow the creation of personalized training paths, and it will be training that will attract female talent in all areas, including STEAM. Along with this development, continuous technological progress, especially in the fields of Artificial Intelligence and Renewable Energy, and the adaptation of the VET system to current business needs, the employability of students could be even greater.

How would you encourage young people to study Vocational Education?

I would say that in VET they will find the path that suits their vocation, work expectations or training path, and right now what companies are telling us is that they need technical profiles and high-level technicians. And beyond employment, I would highlight the flexibility offered by this training, because choosing this path does not close the door to the university, and because there are ways to take a Vocational Education adapted to situations where it is necessary to combine studies, for example partial, offer or distance training. VET is for everyone.