There is now a rich research tradition with sufficient evidence to suggest that the possession of social capital will lead to economic benefits and social advantages, both at the individual level and at the level of the wider environment (for example, the neighborhood, the region). Examples of economic benefits at the individual level are: to find a job faster, to find a job of higher quality and to earn more. Examples of social benefits are: being part of more and larger networks and having less social isolation. Social capital and cohesion are policy targets of the EU.

Social capital exists both at the individual level and at the collective level. Bourdieu, Coleman and Putnam are well-known theorists on collective social capital, Lin inter alia focuses on individual social capital. She considers social capital as a personal investment in social relationships to enable better access to resources (Lin 1999, 39). The concept of social capital is still in development (Haynes, 2009). Haynes finds that despite the differentiation in operationalization the concept has enough potential for empirical research.

We know from research that social capital is distributed unevenly according to social status and ethnicity (for the latter see Battu c.s. (2010) and Behtoui (2007).

Social capital can be distinguished in: bonding, bridging and linking. Bonding social capital is mainly formed in the immediate vicinity of the family, and friends. Bridging social capital is formed by contacts with people at similar level but that are a little further away from that person, for example, a member of a club, association or volunteering. Linking social capital is formed by contacts between different hierarchical levels. With strong ties (bonding social capital) there is often overlap in networks. When it comes to finding an internship or job, bridging and linking social capital are therefore of particular importance as they connect different networks (Granovetter, 1974). Our exploratory research showed that young people have not yet accumulated linking social capital.

Research into the social capital of Dutch students is scarce. The few studies regarding VET-students were done by the Expertise Centre for VET (Petit c.s. 2010). There are two studies: an exploration into the formation of social capital in the graduation year, and a study on companies where the importance of social capital is examined in relation to getting a job. The insights obtained through a currently running follow-up study will be broadened and deepened.

The research questions of the follow-up study are:

-       to what extent do secondary VET-students possess social capital with regard to finding an internship or work?

-       does the extent of possession of social capital differ with regard to social origin, ethnic origin, sector within vocational education, training level, successful completion of school?

-       does the nature of social capital (bonding, bridging, linking) differ with regard to social origin, ethnic origin, sector within the vocational education, training level, successful completion of school?

-    how much does social capital actually contribute to the development of the educational career, finding an internship or job?

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