Meeting the Needs for Longitudinal Data on Youth Transitions in Scotland

Meeting the Needs for Longitudinal Data on Youth Transitions in Scotland - An Options Appraisal

What is it?

A national survey of young people in Scotland that has taken place regularly since 1976 with funding from the Scottish Government.
It is a self-completion postal survey sent to young people at their home address
It collects information on young people's:
experience and views of secondary school;
their educational, employment and related activities after leaving school up to their mid 20s;
ethnicity, parental education and social class, personal and family circumstances and housing tenure
It provides information to government and others about young people's experiences at school and their activities afterwards to inform education and training policy and practice and help assess the impact of policy initiatives

What does it cover?

The topic areas covered by SSLS have varied over the years and differ by sweep. Generally the topics include:

Schooling

After school

Their main activities in the years after leaving school - FE; HE; job; training programme; unemployment, not in education, training or employment
FE and higher education - courses; institution; qualifications; financial issues
Labour market - type of job or training programme; training on and off the job; qualifications; finance/pay; job search
Reasons for (non)participation in particular activities
Attitudes, plans for the future and career advice

Background

Who is included?

Young people who attended local authority or independent schools in Scotland.
They are first surveyed in the year after 4th year (the end of compulsory education) at age 16/17 and several times after this. The most recent survey design includes 4 contacts or sweeps at the ages of:
16-17
18 -19
21-22
23-24

How has the information been used?

The Scottish Government publishes reports which give the main results for each survey eg "17 in 2004: Scotland's Young People", "19 in 2005: Scotland's Young People"
The Scottish Government has occasionally commissioned special studies to look in-depth at particular issues; these may be longitudinal, linking together two or three surveys of the same young people. Studies have included ones on:
High Attaining Female School Leavers
Entrants to Higher Education
Young People Not in Education, Employment or Training
The Effects of Low Attainment on Young People's Outcomes at 22-23
Researchers have used the SSLS data in various studies eg a recent study compared young people's experiences of education, training and employment in Scotland with the position in England and Wales over the period 1984 - 2002.

The future of the SSLS?

The number of young people responding to the SSLS has been falling in recent years and there is a lack of information on certain groups such as those not in education, employment or training.
The Scottish Government has therefore commissioned a study to consider the different options that might best meet the need for information on young people's experiences at school and on their activities in subsequent years.