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Key competences in vocational education and training

The overall objective of Cedefop’s Key competences in vocational education and training (VET) project is to promote the development and integration of key competences in VET in Europe through research and evidence-based policy advice.

Purely occupation-specific skills are not enough for VET learners to adapt to new life situations and career shifts. They also need to develop key competences to manage change, take initiative, innovate, and succeed in a constantly evolving world. These competences are also essential for lifelong learning and active societal engagement.

The 2025 Union of Skills initiative emphasised the need for basic skills development in the EU. It aims to ensure that education and training systems are responsive to the needs of the green and digital transitions, promote core EU values such as democracy, human rights, solidarity, social inclusion and diversity, enhance business competitiveness, and ensure skills recognition across the single market. 

To support the implementation of the Union of Skills, the 2025 EU Action Plan on Basic Skills was adopted, including literacy, mathematics, science, digital and citizenship skills. It calls for the integration of these skills across all education and training levels, including VET curricula. The plan emphasises that basic skills are crucial for fostering strong, inclusive, and democratic societies. 

In VET, the 2020 European skills agenda, the Council recommendation on VET and the Osnabrück declaration on VET all underscore the importance of key competences as the foundation for resilience, lifelong learning, employability, social inclusion, and active citizenship, while also supporting green and digital transitions.

Building on these principles, the Herning declaration, adopted in September 2025, renews collaborative efforts to tackle both ongoing and new challenges in VET. It includes a vision for increased competitiveness and quality jobs, and it reaffirms the commitment to implementing the 2020 Council Recommendation and the Osnabrück Declaration. The Herning Declaration specifically stresses the need for VET to develop basic and transversal skills, including citizenship, entrepreneurship, and sustainability education to ensure lifelong adaptability to changing labour market needs and personal development.  

Study on citizenship competence (2025 - ongoing)

Citizenship competence means the ability to participate actively and responsibly in democratic societies. It is essential for navigating disinformation and social polarisation but is threatened by declining civic engagement.

Almost half of all upper secondary learners in the EU (27 countries) are in VET (49.1% in 2023). At the same time, citizenship education receives significantly less attention in VET compared to general education. As the Eurydice report Citizenship Education at School in Europe 2017 indicates, this means fewer dedicated curriculum approaches, less guidance for teachers, and fewer opportunities for student involvement. This disparity is concerning because disadvantaged learners are often over-represented in VET, which can amplify existing inequalities. Moreover, citizenship education in VET remains an under-researched area.

In 2025, Cedefop launched a new study to deepen understanding of how initial VET systems in Europe support the development of citizenship competences. Running until 2027, the study will explore developments in eight EU countries: Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Czechia, Estonia, and Italy. It aims to identify effective practices, challenges, and gaps, providing insights to inform policy, guide implementation strategies and support discussions at the EU-level.

The study will address the following research questions:

  • To what extent and how is citizenship education integrated in school- and company-based initial VET in Europe?
  • What are the strengths and opportunities of EU-level activities in promoting citizenship competences in VET across Member States?

Study on entrepreneurship competence (2021-23)

Cedefop’s 2021-23 study provides evidence for policy-makers, social partners, VET providers and researchers on how entrepreneurship competence is embedded in initial VET across Europe, including challenges and opportunities.

Two main research questions guided the study:

  • How do entrepreneurial learning ecosystems support embedding entrepreneurship competence in VET in Europe?
  • What policies, methods, tools, and approaches are most effective for embedding entrepreneurship competence in VET?

Research highlights:

  • Basic concept of entrepreneurship competence: while most countries adopt the EU's definition (seizing opportunities and turning ideas into value), its interpretation varies and may lean more towards business creation. This creates mixed feelings among VET teachers, some preferring a broader view.
  • The entrepreneurial learning ecosystem framework: the study examines VET through a three-part framework: Policy (influencing skills), VET providers (supporting competence development and collaboration with stakeholders), and Teaching, learning and assessment (implementing best practices). The research showed that successful ecosystems require strong connections and consistent action across these dimensions.
  • Actionable insights: the study identifies key challenges in VET entrepreneurship education and offers actionable recommendations – framed as paradoxes – to guide stakeholders towards more effective and comprehensive solutions across Europe.

Cedefop’s research on Entrepreneurship competence in VET included the development of methodology, literature and policy reviews, and field research in eight Member States. This involved engaging with VET stakeholders and 48 VET providers, including companies. The project resulted in eight national case studies from Spain, France, Croatia, Italy, Latvia, Austria, Finland and Sweden, as well as a synthesis report. Key findings were disseminated at an online conference on September 28, 2023.

Study on digital, multilingual and literacy competences (2017-20)

In 2020, Cedefop presented the results of its research on key competences in initial VET: digital, multilingual and literacy. This comparative study examined how literacy, digital, and multilingual competences were promoted and integrated within Initial upper secondary VET across Europe between 2011 and 2018. The analysis covers three levels: national policies, qualifications, and curricula, including four main areas of policy intervention: reference documents, programme delivery, assessment standards, and teacher/trainer competences.

Research highlights:

  • Widespread policy attention: the study identified a high number of policies (79) promoting literacy, multilingual and/or digital competence in the EU-27, Iceland, Norway and the UK. Policies often addressed multiple competences simultaneously, with digital competence receiving the most focus.
  • Policy scope and objectives: while many policies had a broader scope than IVET, about two-thirds aimed to embed these competences within IVET. These policies often linked their objectives to broader societal aims, such as promoting lifelong learning and enhancing employability.
  • Delivery approaches:
    • literacy and multilingual competence are primarily included as stand-alone subjects/modules;
    • digital competence is more often integrated into existing subjects rather than taught separately.

Further reading

Key EU policy instruments and publications

Related Cedefop reports and publications

Other publications

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Project contacts

Who is who
Dmitrijs Kulss
Expert in VET policies and systems - key competences
Send a message to Dmitrijs Kulss
Who is who
Veronika Leiner
Seconded national expert in VET policies and systems - key competences
Send a message to Veronika Leiner
Who is who
Eleni Maria Katsoura
Assistant - qualifications and credentials - key competences - VET policies and systems
Send a message to Eleni Maria Katsoura
Who is who
Vasileios Symeonidis
Expert in qualifications and credentials - future of VET - key competences
Send a message to Vasileios Symeonidis