AN international vocational baccalaureate is being trialled in Oulu, northern Finland with the aim of introducing it worldwide by 2005.

The programme, initiated by the IB, will take three years to complete.

Since there is no ready-made syllabus, everything is to be drawn up from scratch, but it is likely that the general study elements will mimic the standard IB modules.

Erkki Kangas, principal of Oulu Business College which will run the course, says that the vocational IB will be a alternative for those not planning to enter university.

“An international qualification like this will boost the image of vocational education as a whole,” he said.