Lessons in Manufacturing Education for the U.S. from Austria’s Dual-Track Education System

The United States has a renewed emphasis on advanced manufacturing as an engine of economic development. Numerous reports, conferences and initiatives have been created by entities in the public, private and non-profit sectors to give guidance on this topic. The Advanced Manufacturing Partnership (AMP) is one of the most prominent of these many initiatives. Among the many related issues is the need for a highly skilled engineering workforce at the subBachelor’s level. Numerous studies have indicated that the U.S. has a dearth of these workers in the educational pipeline, and industry reports that many such jobs are going unfilled, in spite of the very high youth U.S. unemployment rates; (August 2013 unemployment rates for those aged 20-24 was 13%; 16-19 was 22.7%) Austria has one of the world’s lowest unemployment rates, including one of the lowest youth unemployment rates (August 2013 rates for those aged 15-24 was 8.6%). While it is understood that many factors are involved, a significant element is the country’s dual-track education system, in which students at relatively young ages; 14 or 15, can choose to enter into a combined academic and vocational training program. Austria uses a well-integrated system of government, academic and trade union partnerships to make this system work. Students learn engineering technical training skills on the job, as well as in the classroom. The result of this system is a well-trained workforce that continuously brings youth and innovative ideas into the workplace, and at the same time provides industry with the needed skills and talents to ensure a well-qualified workforce. The lack of enough highly skilled young workers to enter into the advanced manufacturing system in the U.S. is highly problematic, and has significant impacts on the potential success of the afore-mentioned AMP initiative and others. Years ago, U.S. high schools played a role in vocational education, but this system has been largely dismantled in favor of a mostly collegebound academic track. Community colleges in the U.S. have taken up the mantle with some success, but the integration of industry and academia remains problematic with serious skills gaps. In addition, in contrast to Austria’s positive relationships between trade unions, industry and the public sector, in the U.S. these same relationships have been largely antagonistic for many years. What can we learn from Austria that could aid the U.S. in its efforts to revitalize our advanced manufacturing sector? Discussion in the paper will focus on the following: • The resurgence of advanced manufacturing in the U.S. and the resultant need for a highly skilled engineering education workforce at the sub-Bachelor’s level • The state of career and technical education in the U.S. at the sub-Bachelor’s level • The state of career and technical education in Austria at the sub-Bachelor’s level P ge 24859.2 American Association for Engineering Education Draft Paper for Annual Conference, Indianapolis, IN 2014