site.btaOne in Two Vocational High School Graduates Lack Qualifications in Demand on Labour Market

There is no adequate market demand for the qualifications of about half of the students enrolled in vocational high schools, according to a study by the Institute for Market Economics (IME) sent to BTA on Tuesday.

The study reports on the Index of Correspondence between Vocational Education and the Economy Profile 2025. It seeks information on the extent to which vocational education in Bulgaria meets the needs of the labour market. The Index measures the ratio between the planned enrolment of students in vocational subjects and the distribution of employment of people with acquired professional qualifications in various sectors. The index is calculated on a scale of 0 to 100 points, where higher values indicate a better match.

In 2025, the index for the country reached 52.8 points, indicating that for about half of the students enrolled in vocational high schools, there is no adequate market demand for their qualifications.

The index value has dropped slightly in recent years. The reason for this lies mainly in the expanded intake in professions in the Information and communications technology (ICT) sector. Although this makes the mismatch even greater, this transformation is not necessarily entirely negative in the long term. The data show a large proportion of subjects and professions that are not in demand in practice but fill places—on the one hand, in outdated and unnecessarily broad subjects (e.g., in agricultural disciplines) and, on the other hand, in those with relatively low training costs (e.g., in hospitality and catering).

The differences between regions are significant. At one extreme are Dobrich with 64.9 points, Yambol with 62 points, and Silistra with 60.2 points, where vocational education is relatively well aligned with the needs of the economy, especially in agriculture and tourism. At the other end of the spectrum are Kyustendil with 32.9 points, Vidin with 33.7 points, and Kardzhali with 34.5 points, where there is excessive enrolment in fields that are unsuitable for the structure of the local economy. Sofia has a relatively high score of 56.8 points.

The study concluded that the vocational education system is often more inclined to fill classrooms than to train the personnel needed by businesses. There is a need for education reforms that should include broader sectoral education instead of highly specialized classes—training that develops language, mathematical, and technological skills; development of dual education; career guidance; opportunity for transfer between subjects.

The IME also recommended increasing labour mobility. Efforts are needed to encourage willingness to migrate in search of work, as lack of mobility exacerbates regional disparities.