Every year in New Zealand, around 62,000 young people leave school. Just 6% of them enter apprenticeship training. Nearly double that – 11% – neither gain employment nor enrol in post-school education. That comparison points to a serious waste of human potential. In contrast, under the German ‘dual training’ system, fully half of school leavers take up apprenticeships. 

One reason the uptake of apprenticeships by New Zealand school leavers is so low is a cultural narrative that holds university education in much higher esteem than training for a trade.  

The University Entrance qualification illuminates the way to university, but there is no qualification to do the same for trades. The senior school curriculum is likewise geared to the university pathway. That simply does not work for many students. 

Last week, I visited six Busy Schools campuses in Brisbane. Busy Schools is a not-for-profit organisation that caters to young people who have disengaged from mainstream education. Many come from troubled backgrounds. Some are homeless. Some simply found themselves aimless and unmotivated in their previous schools.  

Busy Schools aims to make its students employable when they leave school. They emphasise pathways into apprenticeships. Both State and Federal Government provide funding. 

Students start by completing work-readiness education while undertaking a half-time school curriculum. Employment Pathways Advisors then find them internships in local businesses. From there, they spend two days per week at school and two in the workplace.  

Initially, internships are unpaid, but when students have proven themselves, many secure paid part-time apprenticeships, which they complete fulltime after leaving school. While still at school, apprentices also attend tertiary training institutions one day per week. 

The Busy School model meets students where they are and shows them possibilities they never knew existed. It then prepares and supports them to make the most of their newfound opportunities.  

New Zealand could benefit from a similar model. The charter schools initiative to be launched in 2025 is one possible avenue. However, there is nothing to stop mainstream schools from adopting similar approaches. A Certificate of Trades Preparation would also be a welcome addition to our school qualifications system. 

A forthcoming report for The New Zealand Initiative will make proposals for a more coherent focus on apprenticeships in our senior secondary schools. Such a focus would benefit our economy. More importantly, it would offer purpose and opportunity to students who are not motivated by or cut out for academic study.