If there is a single topic that most people can get worked up about, it is the lack of options for training and education in their sector. The printing industry is as bad as the rest, with plenty of complaints that there is a dearth of training for the industry. And yet a quick search on the internet for print related training courses yields an astonishing 255m hits. So what is sitting in between the perception on the one hand and the reality on the other?

Money is generally the answer to most questions of lack, and in education it is no different. The available courses for wannabe printers around the world are numerous and diverse, and some countries are better than others but education costs money. Young people considering a career may understandably be reluctant to invest in training for an industry perceived as being on the skids. Given the choice between a course in media or one in printing technologies, even though both could be the same, which would you choose?

Of course, this generalisation isn't true for all countries and all flavours of the printing business. We work closely with the Malm? Technical University in southern Sweden, which offers a range of three-year degree courses related to the graphic arts. The courses are structured to work very closely with local industry with the result that all students graduate with some hands-on experience and having had to produce a thesis. Their theses range from topics such as advanced colour management, through to production efficiency and operational management. These courses have been running for a number of years and many of the students stay in the industry. Those who don't choose to work in printing companies can still use their production management training, since it is based on the principles of ISO 9001.

Other countries such as the UK have worked with government and industry to get the graphic arts onto the educational agenda. For example ProSkills's PrintIT! is an industry funded initiative to raise training and educational standards. The programme has been in place for seven years and students can study for GCSE, taken at age 16, and A Levels as a preamble for university, in graphics technology and print. There are also vocational courses and skills-based training options available through the programme. The idea is to help businesses improve their productivity and competitiveness through hiring staff that are fully versed in modern technologies and print media production.

Heidelberg, the world leader in sheet-fed offset printing technology, has established Print Media Academies at 17 locations around the world. All are tailored to the needs of the local industries and strive to 'convey sound knowledge about forward-looking printing technologies and successful management'. Heidelberg recently announced a programme for print buyers, the Print Buyer University, which takes place from July 16th to 20th 2012 at the Print Media Academy in Heidelberg, Germany.

Industry associations are also good sources of training. In the UK the BPIF offers two types: apprenticeships for work-based education and training programmes tailored to individual requirements. Courses range from management qualifications through to personal development courses. Trade magazines and suppliers have also got into the training act, with courses to teach colour management for instance, or pre-flight and process automation.

So there is no lack of opportunity for further education within the printing industry. All this choice is fantastic and should bode well for the sector's future. Except that there is a fundamental flaw in the approach the printing industry (and probably other ones) has to education. It is seen as a one-off, something that is exclusively associated with school and youth. But this is a very short-sighted perspective, particularly in an industry subject to so many competitive threats and so dependent on developments in ancillary industries such as IT.

Education should continue throughout one's working life, because it is an investment in the future as well as the present. Unfortunately too many of us reckon that once school is over, we no longer need to keep our minds sharp, challenge our own thinking, or accept that we do not, despite appearances to the contrary, know everything. But this is probably not realistic. "The young know everything, the middle-aged suspect everything, and the old-aged believe everything," reckoned Oscar Wilde. Something to ponder.