More students in Armenia are enrolling in vocational colleges after completing ninth grade, with a reported 11.4% increase in admissions to the vocational education and training (VET) system over the past year, according to Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sports Zhanna Andreasyan.

Speaking at a joint session of the National Assembly’s standing committees during the preliminary review of the 2024 state budget execution report, Andreasyan noted that one in every three students who completed ninth grade last academic year applied to vocational institutions, Armenpress reports.

“This is a very positive trend. It shows our children are becoming more career-oriented by the end of ninth grade. I must emphasize that this is also a result of our new educational standards. Starting from eighth grade, we’ve made vocational orientation clubs mandatory, helping students make informed decisions about their future learning paths,” the minister stated.

She highlighted that, based on last year’s data, enrollment in vocational education grew by 11.4%.

“Currently, around 45,000 students are studying at vocational institutions. This is crucial for the development of our economy, as we are in urgent need of skilled professionals, many of whom are being trained through college-level education,” Andreasyan emphasized.