> nothing that would prepare you for a career I generally agree with you but this is a little too far. At least bigger Volkshochschulen do offer non-academic q

> nothing that would prepare you for a career I generally agree with you but this is a little too far. At least bigger Volkshochschulen do offer non-academic qualifications, especially in the area of continuous education for those with existing qualifications. Besides languages, this ranges from various finance and law classes for people who are starting their own business, over “Ausbildung der Ausbilder” (Train the Trainer but a formal qualification the German dual system), to certificates like CCNA. The courses that are offered vary widely between cities, it’s difficult to generalize. What you find is courses that are job-qualifying degrees. The VHS is really structured around taking individual, stand-alone, courses. The one exception I can think of is that some VHS’ are offering “Hauptschulabschluss” for those who left school without graduating.