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What you can build on your journeyman certificate
When you are trained you have a solid foundation – but you don't need to stand still. A vocational education is today a good platform to build on both if you want to become better in your field and if you want to move in new directions. Here are some of the paths that lie open.
The simplest step is continuous further education. Short courses, including those at the labor market training (AMU), let you update your knowledge about new materials, techniques, and machines. It is a good way to keep up when the trade develops — and it does not require you to leave working life for a long time.
Another way is to go deep with a niche in your own profession. As a boatbuilder, you can become an expert in, for example, wooden boat restoration or advanced composite boatbuilding. As a sailmaker, you can specialise in particular sail types or in computer-aided sail design. Deep specialisation makes you the one others call when the job is difficult.
With a journeyman's certificate in hand you have access to several higher education options. Many skilled workers build on towards e.g. technician or academic level within a related technical area or towards a business academy education if you want more theory and broader competencies. The specific entry requirements depend on the individual education — check them with the education provider.
For many craftspeople the dream is to become self-employed. With experience a customer base and a handle on business you can open your own workshop or sail loft. Here courses in business management economics and leadership are a good investment alongside the purely technical — because a good craftsperson is not automatically a good business operator but both can be learned.
“Your journeyman certificate is not a full stop, but a springboard — you choose how high you want to jump.”