Vocational education and training (VET) is considered a strategic pathway for tackling early leaving, improving young people’s educational level and their opportunities for gaining access to the job market. This work contributes to VET research line through the description of the personal and academic profile of all those students who are involved in itineraries of secondary VET according to the multidimensional construct of student engagement. Focused on a sample of 761 young people who, during 2014-2015 academic year, were involved in Catalan VET programmes of level 2 (named CFGM) of Barcelona city and its surrounding area, results show a young people’s ‘non-controversial’ personal and academic profile. This first approach to these youngsters’ profile contribute to a better knowledge and understanding of why they have decided to enrol in VET pathways, and if they want to continue or leave them.

This workshop is part of the project: "Pathways leading to success in, or dropout from, vocational training in the education system at levels 1 and 2" ("Itinerarios de éxito y abandono en la formación profesional del Sistema educativo de nivel 1 y 2" - Ref. EDU2013-42854-R), funded by the Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitivity, the National Research Agency and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) in the national I+D+I framework.