They were supposed to boost vocational learning, but they’re not popular with students and the dropout rate is high. Time for a dose of realism

What’s in a name? With T-levels, quite a lot. By choosing a title that sounded a lot like A-levels – with T for technical – the reformers behind England’s latest post-16 qualification sent a message that the days of vocational education’s second-class status were over. The two-year courses, launched in 2020 (and not adopted in the rest of the UK), were supposed to boost applied learning and the prospects of the more than 50% of young people who don’t study for A-levels followed by a degree.

There are more than 20 T-level options, ranging from early years education to engineering, with each student choosing only one. But nearly five years on, the courses haven’t caught on. Fewer than 3% of 16-year-olds enrol for a T-level, with the vast majority preferring either A-levels, older “applied general” qualifications (which include BTecs), or some combination.

Susanna Rustin is a Guardian journalist