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BDA AGENDA 8/22 | Topic of the week | April 28, 2022



Girls’ Day and Boys’ Day are taking place nationwide today, April 28. Around 10,000 companies across Germany are taking part, either analog or digital. The BDA is an official campaign partner.

Gender stereotypes should not really play a role when deciding on a career. And yet the career choices of women and men in Germany will still differ considerably in 2022: while young women mainly opt for apprenticeships as office management assistants and medical or dental assistants, the top 3 apprenticeships for young men have been automotive mechatronics technician, electronics technician and industrial mechanic for years. The situation is similar for degree courses.

The reason? It is often due to a limited knowledge of career opportunities and development possibilities beyond the gender stereotypes that still prevail. Young women in particular often state that they want to “do something with people” in the future, but rarely ask themselves from which position they would like to do this: Do they want to care for people, advise them, guide them or develop solutions for them? Many girls are simply not aware of how closely they could work with people as a computer scientist, plant mechanic or civil engineer. And conversely, boys often only have very limited ideas about working as a geriatric nurse or a nursery school teacher.

Against this backdrop, the Girls’ Day and Boys’ Day campaigns offer a targeted opportunity to get to know exciting professional fields beyond prejudices. This makes them the world’s largest career guidance program that promotes the idea of choosing a career and study path free of role stereotypes. Pupils from Year 5 onwards visit companies and meet role models in professions that are still predominantly carried out by women or men and thus discover their individual strengths and talents. For boys, the focus is on careers in the social sector, education and nursing professions, while for girls the focus is on STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics).

Around 10,000 companies and institutions will open their analog or digital doors today and showcase opportunities on Girls’Day and/or Boys’Day. The BDA supports them as a member of the official steering group for both days of action. Evaluations in recent years have shown that many companies subsequently receive inquiries about internships (one in three companies in 2021) or apprenticeships and university places (over 50% of companies). A commitment that pays off!

Vocational orientation is also on the agenda for the upcoming “Summer of Vocational Training” of the Alliance for Initial and Further Training, which will take place from May to October 2022. Together with the DIHK and BA, the BDA has taken on sponsorship for the topic of “vocational orientation” and will participate with a series of webinars via SCHULEWIRTSCHAFT Deutschland.
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