In the fall of 2008, 1,417 apprentices started their careers at more than 40 Bosch locations in Germany. This means that the company was able to achieve a further slight increase on last year's figure, which was already high. In 2009 as well, Bosch expects to keep the number of apprenticeships in Germany constant.
In Germany, Bosch currently has some 4,400 young people in its occupational training programs, and roughly 6,000 worldwide. "Comprehensive, high-quality training ensures that we have skilled people with the right qualifications. This is why, as part of our social commitment, we have been training more people than we actually need for many years now. Currently, the figure is 30 percent higher than the actual requirement," says Dr. Wolfgang Malchow, the Bosch board of management member responsible for human resources. The new apprentices also include roughly 180 students from the University of Cooperative Education, who will end their three-year period of study with a bachelor's degree. 61 percent of the new apprentices have a tenth-grade school-leaving certificate, 28 percent a university-entrance qualification, and 11 percent a ninth-grade school-leaving certificate.
The apprentices can choose from more than 40 different careers. This year, roughly 1,000 of the young people opted for a technical apprenticeship. They could choose classic metalworking and electrical engineering careers, or opt for careers in areas such as microtechnology, systems IT, or specialist IT. "It is pleasing to see that the share of young women taking apprenticeships in the technical field has risen to more than 13 percent for the first time," Malchow said. In terms of the total number of new apprentices, the share of young women is 22 percent. "Bosch promotes a wide variety of offers for young women in order to awaken their interest in technology. Initiatives such as the 'Girls' Day,' at which young women gain insights into technical careers, or femtec, the German higher education career center for women in engineering and the sciences, are increasingly bearing fruit," Malchow said. In 2008 alone, more than 1,500 young women participated in Girls' Day at 35 Bosch locations in Germany.
To arouse children's and adolescents' interest in technology, science, and business at an early age, Bosch plays an active role in the "Knowledge factory – companies for Germany" initiative, of which it is a founding member. The company has already entered into 47 educational partnerships with kindergartens and schools across Germany. In addition, Bosch aims to contribute to promoting young talent at an early age by playing an active role in "Girls' Campus," the "Student Engineering Academy," an alliance of business, universities, and schools, the "Technology Experience Day," and its "Schoolchildren's University" lecture series. Bosch, as a sponsoring company, organized the Baden-Württemberg heat of the "Jugend forscht" competition for young research talent for the 23rd successive time last year.
