Students begin practical training before technical higher education

Students starting technical higher education at Erhvervsakademi København will now complete a mandatory four-week practical course before their regular classes begin, DR reports.

The new course, called Praktikum, introduces students to activities including welding, soldering and construction techniques. The first group began the course this week.

Freja Emilie Ahrensberg, who has just started a production technology programme after completing upper secondary school, said she welcomed the opportunity despite having achieved high grades.

“It is really great,” she said, because she has no practical experience. “That way, we all start more equally. Otherwise, those with a crafts background would end up at the machines, while those of us with an upper secondary background would handle all the reports.”

Education director Eva Valcke said the aim was to help students keep up with classmates who have vocational backgrounds. The organisers also hope the course will make students who have not studied technology in upper secondary school feel more confident and help them remain in their technical programmes.

Stina Vrang Elias, managing director of the DEA think tank, said practical preparation could be crucial to retaining more students in professional higher education. Students may drop out because they struggle to meet the academic level of their programme, she said, adding that those with a theoretical upper secondary education need particular preparation for practical studies.

The four-week course is compulsory for students on programmes in energy technology, automation technology, construction coordination, production technology, and surveying and land measurement technology.