Finns value vocational schools – but their overall views of the education sector are less favorable
T-Media’s Reputation&Trust of vocational schools revealed that Finns hold the vocational schools they are familiar with in high regard—while their overall views of the vocational education sector are significantly less favorable. Luovi Vocational College is the most prestigious institution in the survey, while OSAO saw the biggest rise in reputation.
A survey conducted early this year Reputation&Trust T-Media’s Reputation&Trust provided a rare insight into the views of Finland’s working-age population regarding the vocational education sector. The survey showed that the public holds vocational schools in high regard. Of the 28 institutions surveyed, as many as twelve had a good average reputation score. None of the institutions had a poor reputation.
A total of more than 6,000 Finns aged 15–65 participated in the study. The educational institutions surveyed represented a wide range of different types of organizations in terms of both their educational profiles and their ownership structures. The participants included multidisciplinary educational consortia, business-oriented educational institutions, specialized adult education centers, and special education institutions.
In the survey, special vocational schools received the highest reputation scores:
“Specialized educational institutions have a clear advantage thanks to their strong sense of social responsibility. However, reputation is not directly dependent on an institution’s profile, as the list of well-regarded institutions included a wide variety of schools. For example, the Oulu Region Educational Consortium (OSAO), which has seen a dramatic rise in reputation, and the Tampere Adult Education Center (TAKK) have successfully positioned themselves as part of their cities’ success stories. Perho Business College, on the other hand, can draw on its impressive history in its reputation management,” explains Andrei Sergejeff, the T-Media expert responsible for the study.
“The results show that many vocational schools in Finland are able to compete with universities of applied sciences and research universities in terms of reputation. For example, Luovi Vocational College, which received the highest average reputation score in the study, outperforms most of the country’s higher education institutions in terms of reputation.”
The general perception of vocational education is weaker than that of universities of applied sciences and universities
In the survey, the public held favorable views when evaluating vocational schools they were at least familiar with by name. When asked to evaluate vocational education providers in Finland in general, however, their views became noticeably more reserved.
Photographer: Reputation&Trust Survey of Vocational Schools 2023.
“The reputation of the vocational education sector isn’t bad; it’s more or less average. But it’s fair to say that it’s still worse than what the schools deserve. Of the 28 schools surveyed, only one had a reputation that was weaker than the sector’s overall reputation. And even that was only by a hair’s breadth,” says Susanna Saarenpää, an expert at T-Media.
In the study, the sectoral reputation of the vocational education sector is significantly weaker than that of universities of applied sciences and universities.
“This is no longer a matter of degree, but of scale. This means that Finns’ views on the education sector have become polarized. Currently, Finland has a higher education sector that enjoys an excellent reputation, as well as a vocational education sector with a significantly weaker reputation. And there is nothing in between,” Saarenpää continues.
“While the college level once served as a stepping stone between vocational education and higher education, those days are now behind us. Universities of applied sciences, which grew out of the college system, have risen to a level of prestige on par with research universities. At the same time, the reputation of the vocational education sector has remained mediocre.”
The vocational education sector has a solid foundation for reputation management
The reputation situation revealed by the study poses a challenge for the entire vocational education sector: Reputation&Trust shows that a good reputation leads to strong stakeholder support. Similarly, a poor reputation leads to weak support.
Organizations with a good reputation are treated favorably—they earn trust, receive recommendations, and gain support during crises. However, the strong reputation of individual educational institutions is of little help if people do not choose to study or work in the field in the first place.
Photographer: Reputation&Trust Survey of Vocational Schools 2023.
T-Media experts Sergejeff and Saarenpää note that although the vocational education sector lags significantly behind the higher education sector, there is no reason to be discouraged by this situation. According to them, the better reputation of individual educational institutions provides a solid foundation for reputation management across the entire vocational education sector.
“We also emphasize that, although the reputation of the vocational education sector is undeniably weaker than that of higher education institutions, it is not bad—rather, it is mediocre. This is essentially a favorable starting point for reputation management, as vague perceptions are easier to change than strong ones,” Sergejeff notes.
“To put it simply, Finns don’t currently have a very high opinion of vocational schools in general, but they also don’t have any emotional barriers preventing them from adopting a more positive view.”
This is how we conducted the study
The results are based on Reputation&Trust of vocational schools conducted by T-Media from January 23 to February 23, 2023. The survey examined the general public’s perceptions of 28 vocational schools and the industry sector. A total of 6,052 Finns participated in the survey. The target group for the survey consisted of Finns aged 15–65, excluding the Åland Islands.
Reputation&Trust T-Media’s Reputation&Trust, an educational institution’s reputation score is calculated as the average of eight different categories: how well-managed, financially stable, and innovative each surveyed vocational institution was considered to be, as well as how the value for money of its products and services was perceived, and how open, good employers, properly functioning, and responsible the institutions were perceived to be.
Photo: Luovi Vocational College, Komentajantalo, Oulu
