Secondary vocational education plays a crucial role in the development of students’ professional identity, understood as a dynamic and evolving process in which skills and professional functions, knowledge, values and ethics, as well as personal and group identities, are integrated within specific work contexts. (Chien et al., 2022; Fitzgerald, 2020). Professional identity is constructed over time as students move between school and workplace, navigating who they are and who they might become as future workers. 

The main research question is: “How does the process of creating professional identity unfold among students in vocational secondary schools?”, examined through the perspectives of various groups of participants relevant to the school context.

In vocational pathways, aforementioned identity work is closely related to the interplay between school‑based and workplace learning. A review of students’ learning processes in vocational education and training (VET) shows that alongside expertise and motivation, professional identity development is one of the central concepts when students combine classroom instruction with work placements. Vocational schools and workplaces are organized around different logics (learning/theory versus working/practice) so students must actively forge connections between abstract knowledge and situated tasks and henceforth they develop an anticipatory sense of “being” a member of a vocational community (Schaap et al., 2012).

Research from professional fields underline the centrality of practice experiences and socialisation. Fieldwork placements enable students to engage directly in professional practice, compare the ideals taught in school with the realities of everyday work, and confront dissonances that they must subsequently integrate and make sense of within their self‑narratives (Arreciado Marañón & Isla Pera, 2015; Ashby et al., 2016). Another important aspect of students’ professional identity formation is the role of VET teachers. Pylväs et al. (2022) emphasize the significance of social support and positive feedback provided by VET teachers during vocational training lessons. According to students, experiencing a sense of equality with their VET teachers is also beneficial. Related to this is the positively perceived sense of belonging and autonomy that students report during VET lessons (Hegna, 2019). These experiences reveal how identity is shaped not only by competence but also by emotions, relationships and perceived legitimacy as a professional (Timoštšuk & Ugaste, 2010). 

In the European context, the issue is notable. Many European countries have expanded or reformed VET to address skill shortages, youth unemployment and social inclusion issues, positioning VET as a crucial bridge between education and work (Lamote & Engels, 2010; Schaap et al., 2012).

Understanding how secondary VET students develop, negotiate, or resist professional identities within these systems is crucial for addressing early detachment from the labour market and the ongoing reproduction of classed and gendered vocational pathways. (Schaap et al., 2012; Vähäsantanen, 2015). 

This poster is part of a broader, ongoing qualitative study of professional identity among various actors in secondary vocational education, involving school headmasters, career counsellors, class teachers, vocational training teachers, and students at two vocational secondary schools. The present contribution narrows this wider project to the perspective of students. Said research encompasses four study programs: pastry chefs and carpenters at School 1, and metalworkers and electricians at School 2, allowing slight comparison across different vocational pathways within the same national context. A longitudinal qualitative research design was applied, drawing on semi-structured interviews complemented by non-participant observations in vocational training lessons (Creswell & Poth, 2018; Saldaña, 2016). Both the interviews and observations were conducted three times during the first school year of students – at the beginning, during mid-year, and end of the school year – to capture developmental processes over time in everyday classroom and vocational training. This design enables an in-depth understanding of identity formation as a dynamic and contextually embedded phenomenon situated at the intersection of school structures, teaching practices, and peer interactions. For the purposes of this poster, conducted analyses focus on interviews with students (n = 72) across the first, second, and third waves, along with the corresponding sets of observations from vocational lessons, providing rich longitudinal data on their first year of study. The analytical approach combines thematic analysis with iterative coding cycles to identify and refine patterns in students’ evolving perceptions of professional norms, values, and roles, and their own expectations related to their future profession. Special attention is paid to how these perceptions change across the three waves, how they are mirrored, reinforced, or challenged in observed vocational training lessons. This output was supported by the project "Research on Peripheries to Strengthen the Resilience of Czech Society", Reg. No. CZ.02.01.01/00/23_025/0008727, co-funded by European Union (Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports of the Czech Republic, OP JAK).

It is expected that students in the first year of secondary vocational education will describe the early formation of their professional identity as a gradual and sometimes uncertain process. Students are likely to articulate initial images of “what it means to be a pastry chef, carpenter, metalworker, or electrician,” shaped by prior experiences, family influences, and societal stereotypes. Over the school year, a change in their perspectives is expected. Students may begin to relate these initial images to concrete learning experiences encountered in the school environment. Students are expected to report whether interactions with vocational teachers and trainers are crucial for how they imagine their future professional selves. They are likely to reflect on how feedback, praise or criticism influence their confidence and sense of belonging in the professional field. Across the three interview waves, some students may strengthen their self-identification with the profession as they gain skills and experience success, while others may express doubts or consider alternative pathways when confronted with difficulties, mismatches between expectations and reality, or negative experiences in school or practical training. Students are expected to describe how classmates support or challenge their developing sense of “becoming a skilled worker.” Overall, the longitudinal data could show how first-year vocational students’ professional identity is dynamic and negotiated in everyday school and training situations.

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