New data released by the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) indicates a slight decrease in newly registered vocational training contracts in Germany for 2024. A total of approximately 475,100 contracts were concluded, representing a decrease of 1.0 percent, or around 4,700 contracts, compared to the previous year (2023: 479,800).
The data reveals a shifting demographic within the apprenticeship system. While new contracts for German apprentices decreased by four percent, those for apprentices with foreign citizenship rose significantly by 17 percent. This trend of increasing participation by foreign apprentices has been consistently observed over the past decade. Over the ten-year period from 2014 to 2024, the overall number of new apprenticeship contracts declined by eight percent. However, the number of foreign apprentices has nearly doubled, increasing by 93 percent from 36,200 in 2014 to around 70,000 in 2024.
In 2024, approximately 15 percent of all new apprentices held foreign citizenship, compared to seven percent in 2014. The most common nationalities among these apprentices were Vietnamese (7,100), Syrian (6,800) and Ukrainian (5,800). Notably, the number of new contracts for Ukrainian citizens nearly tripled compared to the previous year (an increase from 1,900 in 2023 to approximately 5,800 in 2024). Vietnamese citizens also saw a substantial increase of 2,700 contracts, while Syrian citizens experienced a slight decrease of approximately 110 contracts.
Concerning popular career choices, women most frequently opted for training as medical assistants (16,100), followed by office management assistants (15,200) and dental assistants (12,800). For male apprentices, the top five most chosen professions remained consistent with the previous year, with mechatronic technicians topping the list at 22,700 new contracts, followed by IT specialists (15,300) and electricians (14,000).
Destatis further reported approximately 339,200 completed vocational training examinations in 2024, in addition to around 16,000 external examinations. Completion rate of further education programs amounted to 80,100 master craftsman and advanced training examinations. The most common retraining programs were for office management assistants, IT specialists (system integration and application development).
As of the end of 2024, around 1.217.900 individuals were engaged in dual vocational training programs. The majority of these apprentices (688,500 or 56 percent) were in the industrial and commercial sectors, followed by skilled trades with 28 percent (341,000).
A ten-year comparison reveals a decrease in the number of apprentices in most sectors between 2014 and 2024. The most significant declines were observed in the industrial and commercial sectors (-15 percent) and skilled trades (-8 percent). In contrast, the public sector and free professions saw increases in apprentice numbers, growing by 19 percent and 3 percent, respectively.