Perceptions of vocational education have improved – Tampere Adult Education Center (TAKK) is the most prestigious
The Reputation&Trust " survey of vocational schools, conducted by T-Media, reveals that the Tampere Adult Education Center (TAKK) is the most reputable vocational school. The SASKY Education Consortium saw the biggest rise in reputation.
This was the third time the study had been conducted in the field of vocational education, and it examined the reputation of vocational education in general, as well as the reputations of 30 educational institutions offering such programs among the Finnish public.
The Tampere Adult Education Center (TAKK) has the best reputation – vocational schools in particular enjoy a strong reputation
The T-Media study did not identify a single educational institution with an unambiguously poor reputation. More than half of the organizations surveyed had a good average reputation, while the rest were institutions with a moderate reputation.
According to this year’s results, the Tampere Adult Education Center (TAKK) emerged as the most reputable vocational school among those surveyed. Specialized vocational schools also enjoy a very strong reputation.
The SASKY Education Consortium saw the biggest improvement in its reputation. SASKY also saw the largest relative improvement in its image in the areas of finance, innovation, engagement, and employer reputation.
“Nearly half of the organizations surveyed had succeeded in improving their reputation. This is exceptional. The vast majority of all the studies we have conducted, regardless of industry, show that the general public’s expectations and demands regarding organizational performance have become more stringent. Consequently, changes in reputation scores have tended to be negative,” notes Susanna Saarenpää, an expert at T-Media.
The gap between vocational schools and the higher education sector is narrowing
As part of the study, citizens were asked to evaluate vocational schools in Finland in general. Although the reputations of Finnish organizations have been on a downward trend, the survey showed that perceptions regarding the vocational education sector are improving. The images associated with products and services in the field of vocational education have already reached a good level.
“This is very encouraging news for the entire sector. Vocational education still lags behind the higher education sector in terms of reputation, but the gap is beginning to narrow,” says Andrei Sergejeff, an expert at T-Media.
“The entire sector of vocational education providers has been working for a long time to boost the appeal and visibility of vocational education. It’s great to see that this work is paying off,” says Laura Rissanen, Chair of the Association for the Development of Vocational Skills (AMKE).
This is how we conducted the study
The results are based on Reputation&Trust of vocational schools conducted by T-Media in January–February 2024. The survey examined the general public’s perceptions of 30 vocational schools and the vocational education sector. The institutions surveyed represented a wide variety of organizations in terms of both their educational profiles and ownership structures. The survey included multidisciplinary educational consortia, specialized adult education centers, business-oriented institutions, and special education institutions.
A total of 6,106 Finns participated in the study. The study’s target group consisted of Finns aged 15–65, excluding those from 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; how the value for money of its products and services was perceived; how well the institution engages with others; and how well the institutions were perceived as employers, as well as in terms of their proper functioning and accountability.
[button url=”/finns-value-vocational-schools-more-than-general-perceptions-of-the-education-sector/” size=”btn-md” style=”btn-primary” target=””]Read about last year’s study here[/button]
For more information:
Susanna Saarenpää, Specialist, T-Media
+358 40 706 6019, susanna.saarenpaa@reptrust-staging.fi-p.seravo.com
Photo: Tampere Adult Education Center (TAKK)
