It said the situation deteriorated when candidates had attended further education and said it was increasingly worried at the "State-sponsored babysitting nature of some college programmes rather than specifically-targeted vocational training for near-guaranteed employment".

BBC: Scotland business

Its mission is to promote international cooperation and to coordinate programmes in research, services and capacity building to learn more about the nature and resources of the oceans and coastal areas, and to apply this knowledge to improved management, sustainable development and protection of the marine environment and the decision making processes of its 144 Member States.

UNESCO: Social and Human Sciences

'promote international cooperation and to coordinate programmes in research, services and capacity building, in order to learn more about the nature and resources of the ocean and coastal areas and to apply that knowledge for the improvement of management, sustainable development and protection of the marine environment and the decision-making process of its Member States'.

UNESCO: Social and Human Sciences