Social Partners' Conceptions of their Role in School-based Initial Vocational Training of Specialists

School-based initial vocational education and training (IVET) prevails in some countries, as well as in Lithuania. Within this traditional school setting, companies and enterprises serve as suppliers of internships for school students. This study was aimed to explore the qualitatively different ways in which social partners on the ground (teachers and in-company trainers) experience and understand their roles on initial vocational training of students. A convenience sample of 14 stakeholders from several professional fields were interviewed and phenomenographic data analysis approach was applied. Three conceptions were constructed that described social partners’ understanding of their roles in specialists‘ training. Three dimensions of variation marked the differences among the conceptions: responsibility, interest / benefit and expectations for collaboration. The social partners involved in the training of IVET students have qualitatively similar understating of their roles but unmet expectations about each other’s roles and involvement. The results can provide new insights into how the IVET partnership could be designed.