Into the unknown or into planning? Managing the transition to work in the UK

Employment and recruitment practices in planning as in other white-collar professions, have been affected by fundamental changes in Western economies. Changes during the last five years mean thai planning school graduates are likely to face an increasingly competitive jobs market. In this article, I review trends facing the planning profession and explore how U.K. planning schools are responding to the challenge of promoting in students both the traditional academic skills and a much greater knowledge of practice. The European and U.K. government policy reward planning is reviewed, and the Network in Town Planning is discussed as a vehicle for exploring stakeholder interest in the educational process. I then propose the need to develop the concept of vocational learning.