• Approximately one-third of high school students in Israel study in vocational education tracks. The study estimates the effect of vocational education compared to general studies in high school on a range of outcomes, based on an extensive opening of vocational education tracks in Arab localities during the 1990s.
  • Opening of the vocational tracks reduced high-school dropout rates, and among girls even increased the share of those taking matriculation exams (“Bagrut”). However, it did not increase the share of those eligible for a Bagrut diploma.
  • Opening of the vocational tracks had no statistically significant effect on acquiring of a tertiary academic education, on employment or on students’ wages in adulthood. The share of women employed in clerical professions increased, in line with the composition of professions in the tracks that were opened.
  • There was a statistically significant decline in the probability of women getting married until age 18, apparently due to the increase in their probability of completing 12 years of education.


 Full press release, including graphs and data​





[1] Vocational education is also termed technological education.

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