Poland’s graduate tracking system, launched in 2016, has become a permanent, data-driven policy tool. A major legislative amendment in 2025 expanded its analytical scope, enabling detailed socio-economic insights and reinforcing its role in shaping education and labour market strategies.
Major legislative expansion in 2025
On 1 September 2025, a key amendment to the Education Law improved the system’s analytical capacity by introducing new data streams. These include indicators on graduate mobility, special educational needs (SEN), employment quality, and sectoral integration. By linking external examination results to career outcomes, policymakers can assess the long-term impact of early educational achievements.
This upgrade, fully integrated into the 2026 monitoring cycle, will enable precise measurement of regional skills imbalances, inclusion policy effectiveness, and job quality.
System overview and origins
Poland’s graduate tracking system (Monitoring Karier Absolwentów) monitors the career and education trajectories of all secondary school graduates, including those from vocational education and training (VET). Managed by the Educational Research Institute National Research Institute (IBE PIB) with the Ministry of National Education, it relies on integrated administrative data to provide comprehensive, population-wide intelligence—avoiding the limitations of surveys, such as low response rates.
Inspired by the higher education tracking system (Ekonomiczne Losy Absolwentów – ELA), it aligns with EU strategic objectives, including the 2016 New Skills Agenda and the 2017 Council Recommendation on graduate tracking.
Development timeline
The system’s evolution began with extensive research between 2016 and 2018, using surveys to collect insights on learner expectations and career choices. Findings published in 2019 revealed that VET students made deliberate decisions, with anticipated earnings as the main motivator.
From 2019 to 2021, legal and technical foundations were established, culminating in a 2020 amendment to the Education Law and its approval in February 2021. This milestone extended coverage to all secondary graduates and made career monitoring a statutory responsibility.
The system became fully operational in 2021, with the Education IT Centre processing administrative data and IBE PIB conducting scientific analysis. By the end of the year, the first nationwide report and over 5 500 tailored VET school reports were delivered.
Between 2022 and 2024, the system’s monitoring capabilities were expanded to track graduates over several years, producing five-year post-graduation analyses and detailed regional and sectoral reports. These developments strengthened the system’s role as a key source of evidence for education and labour market policy.
Future trajectory
Future development focuses on maximising data utility and accessibility for all stakeholders. By late 2025, interactive reports for municipalities and counties will improve local decision-making. An EU-funded project, led by the IBE PIB, aims to provide dynamic tools for students, parents, and counsellors by 2028, ensuring the system remains a cornerstone for evidence-based policy and skills matching, social inclusion, and sustainable economic growth.
Read more
- Graduate Career Monitoring Portal
- Council Recommendation on Tracking Graduates
- VET graduate tracking system: Poland. In Cedefop, & ReferNet. (2025). Timeline of VET policies in Europe (2024 update) [Online tool].
- Vocational school graduates from the 2016/2017 school year.
Methodology and ELA System: Chłoń-Domińczak, A. The Polish Graduate Tracking System (ELA) – Origins and methodology.
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