Vocational students’ perspective on organizational factors enhancing workplace learning

Abstract

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to identify organizational factors that enhance the vocational students’ development of professional skills during workplace learning and, furthermore, to examine the effects of the factors identified on the development.Design/methodology/approach– The results were based on 285 Finnish graduating vocational students’ responses. The confirmatory factor analysis and structural equations were conducted by using Lisrel.Findings– The students’ development of professional skills was enhanced by three organizational factors: an innovative climate, guidance, and interactions with seniors. Furthermore, the results emphasized that other employees have a central role in enhancing the students’ professional skills development.Research limitations/implications– The study used the students’ self-appraisal of the examined factors because it seems to be a common approach. However, future research should consider managers’ and seniors’ viewpoints.Practical implications– Managers should map present and future skills requirements set by the organization and create a detailed plan for the students’ workplace learning. A practical tool to engage and support employees to enhance the students’ professional skills is to make a process with explicit descriptions of each organizational factor and the actors’ responsibilities.Originality/value– The study provides empirical evidence supporting the substantial influence of organizations on the students’ development of professional skills.