TREE (Transitions from Education to Employment) surveys the post-compulsory educational and labour market pathways of a school leavers’ cohort in Switzerland, being Switzerland’s first and so far only prospective longitudinal study of this type at a national level. TREE is based on a sample of approximately 6,000 young people who participated in the PISA 2000 survey, and who left compulsory school the same year. This sample has been followed up by TREE for over ten years, with seven panel surveys at a yearly rhythm between 2001 and 2007, and an eighth survey in 2010, i.e. ten years after the cohort left compulsory school. A ninth wave is planned for 2014, when the cohort shall be approximately 30 years of age.

The survey activities carried out so far are a solid foundation upon which to base a comprehensive, dynamic analysis of what happens in detail between the end of compulsory schooling and young adulthood. TREE’s analytic advantage lies in the possibility to relate the modalities of labour market entry to the surveyed youths’ competencies and environment. Thus, initial labour market entry can be analysed in terms of whether a first post-compulsory certificate or upper secondary level has been obtained, for example. Another axis of research is a detailed analysis of factors (such as gender, migration background, social status, etc.) influencing duration and conditions of job search activities, the presence or absence of spells of unemployment, precarious employment or a job-skills mismatch. These types of analyses are possible across various social groups such as gender, national background, region, etc.

One of TREE’s major advantages is that pathway analyses are not limited to the formal labour market. TREE’s sample and survey design also allows for analysis of pathways and biographical developments on the fringes of the (formal) labour market. Another asset of the TREE dataset is the fact that more than 2,000 surveyed young people have passed through basic vocational education and training (VET). This allows for analysis of groups of professions or economic sectors. TREE promises relevant answers to major questions regarding education, labour market, and social policy.