The introduction and expansion of Degree Apprenticeships, and higher-level apprenticeships more generally, has had a positive effect on widening access to professional and organisational careers as well as in some fields to progression within professions (Lester & Bravenboer 2020; Lillis & Bravenboer 2022). However, as discussed by Talbot…

Purpose: This paper examines how the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated digital developments in apprenticeship and work-based learning in higher education (HE), focusing on practices that have ongoing value. Design/methodology/approach: A literature review was carried out on the theme of HE work-based and work-integrated learning during the…

This Toolkit presents lessons learned from the process of implementing a new system for collecting student-level work-based learning (WBL) data in high school career and technical education (CTE) programs. As part of a study on career academies and WBL, a research team worked closely with a district CTE office and school staff to design and…

It is widely acknowledged that graduates need to develop skills and competences beyond the theoretical knowledge nurtured within higher education curricula. In the last twenty years there has been an increased interest in supporting learners with work-based learning (WBL) (e.g. apprenticeships, practice-based lab sessions, project-based learning).…

The sudden termination of nearly 40% of U.S. WIL experiences during the summer of 2020 caused employers to quickly adapt to virtual WIL experiences. What employers learned from these adjustments to their traditional WIL practices and perceptions of the advantages and disadvantages of virtual experiences form the basis of this paper. Over 350…

Pedagogy in vocational education is challenged by the increasing availability of mixed reality (MR) technologies. Wearable technologies such as the Microsoft HoloLens are being embedded in nursing education programmes in Aotearoa New Zealand and Australia and explored in other subject areas such as construction, architecture, and engineering.…

This paper describes a case study of how situated learning and community of practice theory were applied to the design and delivery of activities and learning assessments in a remote WIL course in a master-level Kinesiology program, supporting students' learning in professional placements. The rationale and theoretical grounding for the course…

In mid-March 2020, the emergence of COVID-19 throughout the United States led to programmatic changes at most higher education institutions, including those involved in implementing model demonstration projects known as Transition and Postsecondary Programs for Students with Intellectual Disability (TPSID) projects. This Insight Brief describes…

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, many organizations offering work-integrated learning (WIL) opportunities were no longer able to support student placements, resulting in many institutions searching for a range of innovative solutions. Many have redesigned their conventional placement-based WIL activities or programs to enable students to meet…

The COVID-19 pandemic required a quick adaptation in the way work-integrated learning programs are offered. While not suitable for all types or disciplines of WIL, this disruption has led to many WIL experiences occurring remotely, that is, students working for organizations from home. Students' perceptions of their WIL experiences have previously…

This Position Paper explores some of the assumptions that underpin the dependence on physical WIL placements. The authors focus on the fundamental question of what exactly we are preparing students for -- is it the workplace, or should we think more broadly about preparing students for the workforce? This raises other questions around the…

"Research Messages 2020" highlights the diverse range of research activities undertaken over the past year by the National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER). Research published during 2019 encompasses a range of themes and topics categorised according to three broad areas: (1) structures and systems for skilling and…

Interested in managing existing work-based learning schemes by incorporating monitoring and evaluation methods? Following a brief discussion of the concept of work-based learning, this handbook presents the rationale for monitoring and evaluation as part of good governance. The functioning of work-based learning schemes is represented by a process…

Sustaining Work-based Learning during the COVID-19 pandemic became a challenge since access to working-cum-learning places for students of a work-based degree programme was depleted. Socio-economic challenges needed to be addressed as students came from economically weaker sections of society. Also critical were the pedagogic challenges in terms…

As school closures enter their second month (and more in some countries), the European Training Foundation's (ETF's) second report, as part of their #learningconnects campaign, on how 27 countries neighbouring the EU are coping finds that more structured responses to the COVID-19 pandemic are emerging in education and training. This update finds:…