Lifelong learning has become increasingly important and its promotion is seen as instrumental in improving and maintaining people’s employability (Hake, 1999). Along with the demand for lifelong learning, individuals’ choices with regard to education and work are supposed to increase and become more diverse. From the viewpoint of educational planning, it often seems that the ideal would include straightforward learning paths proceeding without breaks through different educational levels and ultimately to work. However, individual persons may have highly varied motives for breaks and delays.

Transitions from youth to adulthood and from studies to work have changed (Thomson et al., 2002; Raffe, 2008). Today transitions involve movement back and forth, and individual educational paths may lead to many different directions before establishing a more permanent position in the labour market. Youth transitions have been not only prolonged but also de-standardised. According to Walther (2006), this process is related to such factors as extended periods in education, labour market flexibility and the trend of individualisation. These characteristics have been referred to using the metaphorical term of yo-yo transitions (Walther, 2006). These yo-yo transitions represent a period of shift between youth and adulthood.

Transitions between youth and adulthood can be examined as involving a complex system of socio-economic structures, institutional arrangements and cultural patterns. The characteristic welfare system of each country influences transitions at the macro level. Walther (2006) examines the transition regimes of 11 countries on the basis of the welfare regime categories by Gallie and Paugam (2000). He divides transition regimes into four groups: 1) universalistic regimes, 2) liberal regimes, 3) employment-centred regimes, and 4) regimes of low security.

The universalistic transition regime in Nordic countries is based on a comprehensive school system. At the individual level young adults are encouraged and supported in experimenting with yo-yo transitions by individualised education and welfare options. Youth is associated with active self-development through education. Young people are not regarded just as a future resource but they are supported in their individual choices and transitions, and the purpose is to provide everyone with a secondary level education at least (Walther, 2006, see also Sweet, 2009).

The Finnish policy is in line with the universalistic regime, in which young people’s individual choices and transitions are supported. The Finnish model encourages lifelong education, so that transitions between educational levels and to work would be as flexible as possible (Stenström, Virolainen, Vuorinen-Lampila & Valkonen, 2012).

The present study investigates the generality of different types of student careers and educational transitions in vocational secondary education. Accordingly, this paper describes student careers and related factors in vocational education and training.

The research questions are as follows:

1)      What factors would explain whether a student falls into these categories in different educational sectors: a) studies interrupted, b) graduated in target time, or c) studies delayed?

2)      What kind of differences can be detected between different educational fields?

3)      What factors would explain interruptions and graduations in vocational education and training?

Gallie, D. & Paugam, S. (Eds.) 2000. Welfare regimes and experience of unemployment in Europe. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Hake, B. J. (1999). Lifelong Learning in Late Modernity: The Challenges to Society, Adult Education Quarterly 1999 49: 79. DOI: 10.1177/074171369904900201 Raffe, D. 2008. The concept of transition system. Journal of Education and Work 21 (4), 277-296. Stenström, M.-L., Virolainen, M., Vuorinen-Lampila, P., & Lampila, P. (in press). Ammatillisen koulutuksen ja korkeakoulutuksen opiskelijoiden opintourat [Educational pathways of VET and higher education students]. The Finnish Institute for Educational Research. University of Jyväskylä. Sweet, R. 2009. Apprenticeship, pathways and career guidance: A cautionary tale. Teoksessa F. Rauner, E. Smith, U. Hauschildt & H. Zelloth (Eds.) Innovative apprenticeships. Promoting successful school-to-work transitions. Conference Proceedings, 17–18 September 2009 Turin, Italy. http://www.inap.uni-bremen.de/ Thomson, R., Bell R., Holland, J., Henderson, S., McGrellis, S. & Sharpe, S. 2002. Critical moments: choice, chance and opportunity in young people´s narratives of transition. Sociology 36 (2), 335-354. Walther, A. 2006. Regimes of youth transitions. Choice, flexibility and security in young people´s experiences across different European contexts. Young 14 (2), 119-139.