Johannes Schmees

• Biographie

• Publications

• Research

• Teaching

Biographie

Following study visits to Darmstadt, Bristol and Shanghai, Johannes Schmees was awarded his PhD from the University of Osnabrück in 2019. After holding academic posts at the universities of Darmstadt, Vechta and Osnabrück, he worked as a postdoctoral fellow at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) in Trondheim. Most recently, he was Associate Professor of Technical and Vocational Education and Training at the University of Derby and Visiting Professor of School and Vocational Education at the Technical University of Berlin, before accepting an appointment at the Vienna University of Economics and Business as Professor of Educational Management, a post he took up on 1 October 2026.

Research

Johannes Schmees’s academic work centres on research into vocational education and training. His research combines perspectives from vocational education theory, the sociology of education and education policy, and examines the role of vocational education and training in modern knowledge-based and labour societies.

A key focus of his research is the comparative analysis of vocational education and training and continuing education systems. In this context, he addresses issues of vocational education and training governance, the relationships between the state, the private sector and educational institutions, and the international transfer of vocational education and training policy reforms. Furthermore, he examines educational pathways and transitions within and between vocational education and training, higher education and continuing professional development, as well as the conditions for permeability, educational mobility and social participation.

Methodologically, Johannes Schmees works primarily with qualitative and biographical research approaches. His interest centres on how institutional and societal structures influence individual educational and career trajectories, and how people interpret and shape their educational and career decisions in the context of their life stories.

Another key focus of his work is vocational education theory. He examines the societal functions of vocational education, issues of vocational socialisation and identity development, and the relationship between work, education and emancipation.

Teaching

In his teaching, Johannes Schmees focuses on the areas of educational management, vocational education and training research, and research methods. His courses combine theoretical, empirical and international perspectives on education, work and organisation. He is particularly committed to linking research and teaching. Students are encouraged to critically analyse educational organisations, vocational education and training systems and educational pathways, and to reflect on current challenges in vocational education and training from an academic perspective.