“You continue to learn throughout your life and we also do that further and further training here at Scalda. So if those partners, companies and institutions are increasingly able to find Scalda for those courses, for that further and further training, then we can also keep our educational offering afloat.”
And that is also in the self-interest of those partners, says Van Arenthals, because MBO graduates are in great demand. From process technology to the catering industry and from construction to healthcare, many sectors are really eager for practically trained employees, i.e. MBO graduates.
One of the professional groups where they are already noticing the consequences of the declining number of MBO graduates is elderly care, says Jaap Wielaart, director of care organization Amarijn, formerly known as WVO Zorg.
“You see a huge aging population in Zeeland, so that means that we are suffering a lot from this in elderly care. Because the same aging population, which means that we need more employees, also means that fewer MBO students are finishing the course. So that reinforces each other,” says Wielaart.
