Many paths to skilled employment : a reverse tracer study of eight occupations in Colombia

The authors use the reverse tracer study technique to identify alternative training paths for selected skilled and semi-skilled occupations in Colombia. The study, confirming earlier research for the United States, shows that workers pursue many different training paths to acquire the skills they need in a given occupation. The authors provide an occupational training map format to analyze these training paths. They conclude that strong public intervention that narrows the effective range of available training should be discouraged; such intervention will not only reduce choices but will also lead to a less flexible and efficient training system. A reduction in training alternatives is the result of the manpower requirements forecasting approach to planning for the provision of national vocational education and training - yet that approach is still popular in the planning ministries in developing countries. The more training options available to workers, the better they can arrange their own training packages.