Joint application for vocational teacher education (AMKOPE) is mainly conducted online. The aims of the joint application are to provide equal service to all and to improve the level of information the applicant receives about the processing of his/her application. Online application decreases the time spent on handling the applications, the applicant can check the processing of his/her application anytime anywhere and the applicant can accept a study place securely in the set time. AMKOPE is a forerunner in public administration and education in using VETUMA-service (identification and online payment service for citizens) within governmental services.
Policy Context
From the applicant’s point of view, the greatest benefits of AMKOPE online application service are: easy access to browse available vocational teacher education studies, the contents of studies are all presented in a uniform way and the selection process is transparent and reliable. The online service is easy to use and guides the applicant from finding an interesting study place to accepting it. Online application can be submitted 24/7 during the application period. From the point of view of the vocational teacher education colleges and public administration a national online application service such as AMKOPE improves the information given on study possibilities, student admissions and application procedures. As educational marketing improves, so does the effectiveness of student selection. For example, the applicants who use AMKOPE service are increasingly eligible to apply (in 2004 63.5% eligible applicants, in 2007 71.1 % eligible applicants). Online application decreases the time and resources spent on processing separate paper applications and acceptances of study places. These aims are also supported by the Government Programme, the Government’s Work, Entrepreneurship and Worklife Policy Programme, Ministry of Finance’s e-services projects, and the Ministry of Education’s development plan for education and research 2003-2008. Educational policy aims to stress the importance of lifelong learning, since growing demands on professional skills, ageing of the labour force, different levels of educational backgrounds of different age groups and the growing number of pensioners enhance the importance of life long learning. The importance of lifelong learning in information society has been expressed in “i2010 – A European Information Society for growth and employment†{SEC (2005) 717}. The average age of applicants for vocational teacher training is 40 years old and vocational teacher training is a good example of important form of adult education and life-long learning.
Description of target users and groups
Vocational teacher training is aimed for those who are planning to teach at institutions of vocational education or polytechnics and those who are teaching but have not completed teacher's pedagogical studies, i.e. are not qualified teachers. Applicants for teacher training have already graduated from their specific professional field and have practical work experience. Vocational special education teacher training and study guidance counsellor training are further trainings for qualified teachers. Almost half of the current qualified vocational teachers are over 50 years old. Within the next few years about 20,000 teachers will retire. Also many teachers working in vocational schools and polytechnics are not qualified teachers, about one in four teachers was unqualified in the late 1990s and the beginning of this century. Special education teachers are in great demand and this need will further increase in time. The annual amount of applicants is approx. 5,000, out of that, 4,500 apply to teacher training, 200-300 to special education teacher training and the rest to study guidance counsellor training. The amount of applicants varies on each study fields. As the study places for teacher training are allocated per study field, it is vital to predict the demand for qualified teachers in each study field. For example in the field of technology and transportation many teachers will retire in the next few years and furthermore majority of teachers teaching IT are unqualified teachers, even though they have degrees in IT and work experience. In developing vocational teacher training, emphasis has been given to provide better tools and ways in teaching for example special needs students and immigrants. Also the role of media- and communication technology in teaching has been emphasised.
Description of the way to implement the initiative
The Finnish National Board of Education has the main responsibility for managing AMKOPE online service. The vocational teacher education colleges decide and provide admission criteria for vocational teacher education. National Board of Education up-dates all relevant information to the online service and also upkeeps and develops the service. The maintenance and the technical upkeep of the online service are provided by TietoEnator Corporation, Government Services Finland. Multi-channel issues: Applicants can choose to submit applications online or by using a paper application. Vocational teacher educational colleges may use SMS in contacting applicants at different stages of the application process.
Main results, benefits and impacts
At the moment half of the qualified vocational teachers are over 50 years old. Within the next few years about 20,000 teachers will retire. Also many teachers working in vocational schools and polytechnics are not qualified teachers, i.e. they have not completed the pedagogical teacher training. Approximately one in four teachers was unqualified in the late 1990s and the beginning of this century. Special education teachers are in great demand and this need will further increase in time. The annual amount of applicants is approx. 5,000, out of that, 4,500 apply to teacher training, 200-300 to special education teacher training and the rest to study guidance counsellor –training. The amount of applicants varies on each study fields. As the study places for teaching training are allocated per study field, it is vital to predict the demand for qualified teachers in each study field. For example in the field of technology and transportation many teachers will retire in the next few years and furthermore majority of teachers teaching IT are unqualified teachers, even though they have degrees in IT and work experience. In order to recruit new students for vocational teacher training, vocational teacher education colleges require more resources for promoting and marketing the teacher training courses. The introduction of online application and the online customer service AMKOPE has meant that resources spent earlier on sometimes overlapping administrative tasks such as manually processing application and study place acceptance forms can be now re-directed to giving better guidance to applicants and marketing the training programmes. A clear indication of improved marketing and accessibility are the growing number of applicants who apply to vocational teacher training annually. Furthermore, the number of eligible applicants, i.e. who have required higher education degree and work experience, has grown steadily since the online application service was launched in 2004. Also with the online application system and joint application register it is much easier to get statistical information about applicants. AMKOPE can be described as a user-friendly online customer service that aims to give all necessary information and service to the applicant in a transparent and reliable matter in accordance of good administration. From the applicant’s point of view the application process as a whole takes considerably less time than earlier, this obviously benefits also the vocational teacher colleges and at the end of the day society at large. When using AMKOPE online application service, the applicant can not only fill the application but check the processing of the application and eventually accept a study place electronically. The online service ensures equal treatment of applicants, for example applicants who do not live close to a vocational teacher college can accept a study place quickly and securely, instead of having to send registered letters etc. An applicant can only check his/her own application information and therefore it is vital that an applicant can be reliably identified. Identification takes place through public administration’s VETUMA- identification service. The aim of VETUMA –service is to unify identification in the online governmental services. The user is identified either through online banking user ID numbers or Finnish electronic ID card, using these methods is familiar to most online users form private sector. The method of identification is safe and furthermore the use of a joint identification is cost effective since the government has negotiated contracts with banks. The joint application system for vocational teacher education is a forerunner in using VETUMA-service (identification and online payment service for citizens) within governmental services. Attached: statistics pdf-file on online application Innovation: National online applications to educational institutions are not commonplace in Europe. At the moment in Finland, national online applications are available for four different applications: vocational teacher education AMKOPE (www.opekorkeahaku.fi), degree programmes at polytechnics, degree programmes conducted in foreign language at polytechnics and degree programmes for adult at polytechnics (www.amkhaku.fi & www.admissions.fi). Of these online application services, only AMKOPE provides the user, i.e. the applicant, a complete application and admissions service from submitting the application to accepting a study place. Identification takes place through public administration’s VETUMA identification service (identification and online payment service for citizens). The aim of VETUMA is to unify identification in the online governmental services. AMKOPE is amongst the first public administration online services and the first in education that offers VETUMA as a service for the applicants. The user is identified either through online banking user ID numbers or Finnish electronic ID card, using these methods is familiar to most online users from private sector. The method of identification is safe and furthermore the use of a joint identification is cost effective since the government has negotiated contracts with banks. At the moment AMKOPE has the highest number of VETUMA users (approx. 5,000) of all public administration VETUMA service providers.
Return on investment
Return on investment: Not applicable / Not availableTrack record of sharing
AMKOPE online application service was launched in 2004. In 2007 VETUMA-identification service was included in AMKOPE. 75 % of applicants used VETUMA on average three times during the application process, and the popularity and success of VETUMA in AMKOPE has lead the way for adapting VETUMA to the other national online application services managed by the Finnish National Board of Education. VETUMA will be included in the online application to adult education at Polytechnics in autumn 2007, and in the online applications to degree programmes and degree programmes conducted in a foreign language at polytechnics in spring 2008. The adaptation of service such as VETUMA in AMKOPE can be easily adapted to other public administration services in Finland and in Europe. AMKOPE online service has been presented in conferences and other events for higher education sector in Finland and for other public administration authorities and representatives of private sector.
Lessons learnt
AMKOPE has proven that a well planned and easy to use online service increases the willingness to use online services. The number of applicants and eligible applicants has increased annually. Applicants receive all relevant information online and the application process is a transparent process that treats all applicants equally despite the applicant’s age, gender, nationality, geographical position, etc. From the administrative point of view, AMKOPE online service has decreased resources spent on processing applications and study place acceptances manually, and the saved resources have been directed to guiding and giving more information to the applicants and promoting vocational teacher education in general.
Scope: International, National