The national skills competition in Denmark, held in February 2023, has led to an increase in the number of young people who would consider following vocational education, according to a new survey. SkillsDenmark – the organisation which organises the competition among other functions – shared these positive results along with its 25th anniversary celebration. Denmark now focuses on hosting the 9th EuroSkills competition, which will take place in Denmark (MCH Messecenter, Herning) from 10 to 14 September 2025.
EuroSkills is held every 2 years. The 8th EuroSkills competition will take place in Gdansk, Poland, in September 2023.
In the national context SkillsDenmark organises national skills competitions every year and is also responsible for Denmark's delegation to the EuroSkills competition. The purpose of skills competitions is to increase pride in one’s profession, nurture talent, and promote vocational education – in this respect, SkillsDenmark prides itself on sending the most talented young Danes to EuroSkills and WorldSkills.
National Skills competition and changes in attitudes towards VET/EuroSkills 2025 preparation
The national skills competition held in 2023 coincided with additional ‘results’.
- According to a survey by consulting firm Epinion, after the completion of the 2023 national competition, 42% of young people in the southern region of Denmark strongly considered following a vocational education pathway. This percentage corresponds to an increase of almost 10 percentage points, as before the competition was held, the relevant percentage of young people attracted to VET was around 32%.
- The survey also showed that after the national skills competition of 2023, 65% of parents of 12- to 20-year-olds would recommend enrolling into VET to their children. This is an increase of 14 percentage points compared to the attitudes of the same group before the competition. Moreover, 9 out of 10 parents admit that there are many exciting vocational education programmes available.
- 2023 is a year that marks the 25th anniversary of the SkillsDenmark organisation, and the positive results of the 2023 national skills competition boost a feeling of enthusiastic anticipation of the 9th EuroSkills competition, with Denmark as the host country. In fact, the country is already preparing for the 2025 event and has formed an independent organisation – EuroSkills 2025 – comprising a consortium representing ‘powerful’ Danish stakeholders (the education ministry included), chaired by the former Prime Minister Poul Nyrup Rasmussen (adding to the ‘symbolic’ value attributed to hosting the EuroSkills competition in 2025). Denmark is expecting up to 100 000 visitors to attend the competition, while 700 young people from across Europe will compete for the title and honour of being European champions in more than 40 different professions at EuroSkills 2025.
Read more
- Epinion survey – Statistical information on parents and young people’s attitudes following the National Skills competition 2023
- SkillsDenmark web page
- SkillsDenmark 25 years anniversary leaflet (presentation)
| Please cite this news item as: ReferNet Denmark; Cedefop (2023). Denmark: skills competition enhances VET attractiveness. National news on VET |