What comes after the journeyman certificate?
Further and continuing education building on your skilled background as an orthotist
One of the strengths of a vocational education is that it is a platform, not a dead end. As a qualified orthotist, you can stay in the workshop and become better and better - or you can build further in several directions. Here you get the typical possibilities.
§Short courses to keep you sharp
The craft develops all the time - new materials, new methods, new technology. Short further training courses, among others AMU courses, let you update your skills without taking long time off work. It can be everything from new lamination techniques to digital scanning and CAD. It's a good way to stay relevant throughout your career.
§Specialization in the trade
Many orthotists find over time a field they are passionate about and become experts there. It could be work with children with athletes with diabetic feet or with complex prosthetic solutions. This kind of expertise is built through experience courses and collaboration with clinical professionals — and it makes you a specialist who is hard to do without.
§Higher education
With a vocational education behind you you have access to several higher education options particularly at business academy level. A classic path for craftspeople with technical and production-based foundation is for example production technologist which builds on the technical understanding you already have. Want to go further certain academy and diploma educations may also be an option.
| Direction | What it gives you | Typical format |
|---|---|---|
| AMU and short courses | Update on new materials, methods and technology | Days to weeks |
| Specialization in the trade | Expert status in e.g. children, sports or complex prosthetics. | Experience plus courses |
| Business academy | Broader technical or production education on top of your journeyman certificate | Months to year |
§Master and self-employed
Some choose on the long term to go the management route or start for themselves. Here it is a combination of professional experience, courses in management and operations plus a good network that counts. Having stood at the bench yourself gives you a credibility that is worth gold when you are to lead others.
“Your journeyman certificate is not a full stop — it's a comma. You write the rest of the sentence yourself.”