Facilitating local and global opportunities through Technical Education – Interview with Dr. Norbert Voelker (Germany)

How did you veer into the Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) sector? Is this something you had always wanted to do?

In a way I will say, yes. When I finished school, that was the highest level in Germany, I then had the opportunity to go to university for further studies.  But I made the decision to first do an apprenticeship training because I saw a good opportunity in working with my hands and to see real work in the workshop. And so I took up an apprenticeship training for three years in Germany. And that is how I came into it.  If you take a look at Germany’s industrial sector, you will see that there’s a great mix of people running through vocational education and training and both the graduates as well as the artisans, play an important role in our industry. We need all the different levels. In addition, starting with an apprenticeship training is very good. It is particularly good for personal development, which is very, very important.

It’s often said in Nigeria that everyone wants to be a General and no-one wants to be a foot soldier. And we all know wars cannot be won without foot soldiers.

Yeah, but you know, I would never say foot soldier and general or whatever. Like you know, everybody has a role to play and that is very important. Concerning the reputation of TVET, people going through vocational education and training can attain a very high level educationally, depending on how far they wish to go. Especially if the system gives one the opportunity to work for a while before topping it with further education at the university. So, a TVET apprenticeship will provide you with a very good foundation of practical understanding and experience. This workshop experience can be extremely valuable for someone who trains as an Engineer for example. Marrying practice with theory taught in class. To use myself as an example, I gained practical knowledge from my apprenticeship as an artisan, working as a coach builder at BMW in Germany.  But the summary is that once one had decided on that chosen career path, one just had to be laser focused and determined to succeed. And seeing my peers channel all of their strengths and resources into our medical studies inspired me personally.  It really depends on how far you want to go with it. That’s why I’m not a fan of that General and foot soldier analogy.