Apprenticeship and After: Does it Really Matter?

Using data from the German socio-economic panel this paper analyses the labour market entrance of former apprentices, as well as of university and full-time school graduates. There are three main findings. First, the retention rate of apprentices in their training firms is fairly low. Second, the transition to employment involves unemployment periods for many individuals, and two out of three first employment spells end within five years. Third, the main determinant for post-apprenticeship tenure is firm size of the training company. The expected tenure is the same for individuals staying with their training firm and individuals moving jobs. The findings reveal that apprenticeship training is a less secure way to stable employment than is often assumed. Also, they cast doubt on standard human capital explanations of apprenticeship training.