White Paper - Higher Vocational Education

Policy development
Strategy/Action plan
Norway
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Timeline
  • 2023Design
  • 2024Design
ID number
47261

Background

A brief overview of the context and rationale of the policy development, explaining why it is implemented or why it is important.

A White Paper on higher vocational education was published in 2016, containing 48 development measures. The results of the measures have been evaluated and it is time for new and adjusted measures to further develop this sector. Higher vocational education is important to ensure society the competence needed in working life.

Objectives

Goals and objectives of the policy development.

The White Paper intends to set out measures to strengthen access to competent labour with higher vocational education and to point out a direction for the vocational college sector's further development.

Description

What/How/Who/For whom/When of the policy development in detail, explaining its activities and annual progress, main actors and target groups.

The work on this paper started in 2023 and the Ministry of Education and Research planned to present a white paper on higher vocational education to the Storting by spring 2025. All stakeholders were invited to contribute to this process to ensure relevant content and measures and set the future direction of higher vocational education.

This measure is linked to Hurdalsplattformen and the NIP.

2023
Design

In the last few months of 2023, the Ministry of Education and Research conducted a series of workshops with the higher vocational education sector on topics central in the White Paper: internationalisation, management and financing, quality and relevance, and competence needs. Digital regional input meetings were also held.

2024
Design

Input processes in the higher vocational education sector have been completed and the education ministry was drafting the White Paper.

Bodies responsible

This section lists main bodies that are responsible for the implementation of the policy development or for its specific parts or activities, as indicated in the regulatory acts. The responsibilities are usually explained in its description.
  • Ministry of Education and Research (KD)

Target groups

Those who are positively and directly affected by the measures of the policy development; those on the list are specifically defined in the EU VET policy documents. A policy development can be addressed to one or several target groups.

Learners

  • Young people (15-29 years old)
  • Adult learners

Thematic categories

Thematic categories capture main aspects of the decision-making and operation of national VET and LLL systems. These broad areas represent key elements that all VET and LLL systems have to different extents and in different combinations, and which come into focus depending on the EU and national priorities. Thematic categories are further divided into thematic sub-categories. Based on their description, policy developments can be assigned to one or several thematic categories.

Governance of VET and lifelong learning

This thematic category looks at existing legal frameworks providing for strategic, operational – including quality assurance – and financing arrangements for VET and lifelong learning (LLL). It examines how VET and LLL-related policies are placed in broad national socioeconomic contexts and coordinate with other strategies and policies, such as economic, social and employment, growth and innovation, recovery and resilience.

This thematic category covers partnerships and collaboration networks of VET stakeholders – especially the social partners – to shape and implement VET in a country, including looking at how their roles and responsibilities for VET at national, regional and local levels are shared and distributed, ensuring an appropriate degree of autonomy for VET providers to adapt their offer.

The thematic category also includes efforts to create national, regional and sectoral skills intelligence systems (skills anticipation and graduate tracking) and using skills intelligence for making decisions about VET and LLL on quality, inclusiveness and flexibility.

Coordinating VET and other policies

This thematic sub-category refers to the integration of VET into economic, industrial, innovation, social and employment strategies, including those linked to recovery, green and digital transitions, and where VET is seen as a driver for innovation and growth. It includes national, regional, sectoral strategic documents or initiatives that make VET an integral part of broader policies, or applying a mix of policies to address an issue VET is part of, e.g. in addressing youth unemployment measures through VET, social and active labour market policies that are implemented in combination. National skill strategies aiming at quality and inclusive lifelong learning also fall into this sub-category.

European priorities in VET

EU priorities in VET and LLL are set in the Council Recommendation for VET for sustainable competitiveness, social fairness and resilience, adopted on 24 November 2020 and in the Osnabrück Declaration on VET endorsed on 30 November 2020.

Osnabrück Declaration

  • Resilience and excellence through quality, inclusive and flexible VET
  • Establishing a new lifelong learning culture - relevance of continuing VET and digitalisation

Subsystem

Part of the vocational education and training and lifelong learning systems the policy development applies to.
CVET

Further reading

Sources for further reading where readers can find more information on policy developments: links to official documents, dedicated websites, project pages. Some sources may only be available in national languages.
Link to more information about the White Paper

Country

Norway

Type of development

Policy developments are divided into three types: strategy/action plan; regulation/legislation; and practical measure/initiative.
Strategy/Action plan
Cite as

Cedefop, & ReferNet. (2025). White Paper - Higher Vocational Education: Norway. In Cedefop, & ReferNet. (2025). Timeline of VET policies in Europe (2024 update) [Online tool].

https://www.cedefop.europa.eu/de/tools/timeline-vet-policies-europe/search/47261