Improving post-school outcomes for rural school leavers

A study of Year 10 leavers from rural high schools in Tasmania has found th at school pressures to remain in Years 11 and 12 have not necessarily solve d the post-school career dilemmas of rural youth. Indeed, despite growing n umbers of VET options in schools, these are not being taken up significantl y by younger students despite student and family aspirations for a 'steady job' and job related training, within an increasingly depressed and casuali sed regional labour market. Implications of family support and community 's ocial capital' in negotiating a way through the trials and errors of the wo rk/study mosaic are discussed in relation to national policy frameworks.