Blog by Ellie Craig
5th November 2026
The subjects young people study today will help shape Scotland’s economy tomorrow
Choosing subjects at school can feel like a personal decision about what you enjoy, what you are good at and perhaps what you might want to do next. Most of us do not have a clear career plan at that age. But the choices available to young people can have a lasting influence on their opportunities – and on the skills Scotland will have in the years ahead.
The range of qualifications available to school pupils is changing. National Progression Awards (NPAs) offer opportunities to study subjects from criminology and construction to data science and cyber security. Their growth has been striking: the number of NPA awards recorded through Scottish schools more than trebled between 2022 and 2026.
That is worth celebrating.
Scotland needs an education system that recognises different talents and gives young people more ways to develop their interests and abilities.
As businesses adopt new technologies and seek to improve productivity, the ability to solve problems and adapt to change will be increasingly important.
But growth in qualifications is not, on its own, proof that opportunity is improving for everyone.
Our latest David Hume Institute briefing, Unequal Pathways? Access to National Progression Awards in Scotland, found considerable geographical variation in the number of NPA subjects with recorded attainment in schools. In 2026, that ranged from one subject in Shetland to 55 in Edinburgh and Fife.
These figures do not prove that young people in areas with fewer recorded subjects have fewer opportunities, as they do not capture the full contribution of colleges and partnership arrangements.
That is precisely the problem: Scotland does not yet have a sufficiently complete picture of the opportunities available to young people.
If we are serious about broadening the senior phase, we need to know whether that ambition is being realised across the country.
Local flexibility can be a strength, but it should widen opportunity, not make it harder to see who is missing out.
There is another important question: what happens after a young person gains an NPA?
Qualifications only have real value if learners understand where they can take them. Some universities recognise particular NPAs for specific courses, but approaches vary and information can be difficult to find.
Young people should not have to discover during the admissions process that a qualification they have worked hard to achieve may not count towards their chosen next step.
This matters for employers, too.
If schools are to offer a wider range of relevant qualifications, those qualifications need to connect to further study, training and employment. Businesses must help identify the skills they need and create routes for young people to develop and use them in the workplace.
The ambitions of the Hayward Review were about recognising a broader range of learning and giving every young person the opportunity to demonstrate their abilities. The growth of NPAs suggests that parts of this ambition are already taking shape. The challenge now is to make sure the system around them keeps pace.
Scotland's economic prospects depend on the skills, ideas and adaptability of its future workforce. Education cannot guarantee economic growth, but it can help create the conditions for it. That means giving young people meaningful choices, recognising their achievements and building clearer routes from learning into work.
A broader curriculum is a promising start.
The real measure of success is whether every young person, wherever they live and whatever their interests, can develop their abilities and see a credible path ahead.
Scotland should be judged not by how many qualifications it offers, but by the opportunities those qualifications open up.
Ellie Craig is Policy and Engagement Executive for the David Hume Institute and was the lead researcher with Director Susan Murray on the briefing: Unequal Pathways? Access to National Progression Awards in Scotland.
Sharing Thumbnail Photo by Markus Winkler on free licence on Unsplash 5th November 2026
