Projects

The purpose of this project is to support the design, diffusion and implementation of VET policies and measures helping adults, especially the low-skilled, to achieve the knowledge, skills and competences required for work, employability and lifelong learning.

The overall aim of the project is to expand protection and solution opportunities through complementary pathways of admission to Europe and legal intra-EU mobility. For this purpose, the project will design a VET, skills and qualifications supported complementary pathway mechanism; such a mechanism takes from the beginning VET, skills and qualifications into account as a way to support legal mobility of refugees and has the potential of increasing labour market integration possibilities in the medium to long run.

Cedefop’s European skills and jobs survey (ESJS) has revealed that about 45% of EU adult workers believe that their skills can either be better developed or utilised at work. European policy that mitigates skill mismatch can thus be conducive to raising productivity and improving worker well-being.

But better matching a country’s skill supply to the needs of its economy is a dynamic process that requires policies to increase education and training responsiveness to labour market needs. Mitigating skill mismatch in an era of fast-paced digitalisation, AI and automation requires a well-developed skills anticipation infrastructure in countries and an integrative approach to skills governance.

Apprenticeship and other forms of work-based learning can be an opportunity for empowering young people and adults, boosting their long-term employability through quality education and training.

The aim of the Changing nature and role of vocational education and training (VET) in Europe project is to improve our understanding of how VET is changing in the European Union countries (including Norway and Iceland). Over a three-year period (2016-18), the project will analyse how vocationally oriented education and training has developed and changed in the past two decades (1995-2015) and, on this basis, point to the main challenges and opportunities facing the sector today and in the future.

The project will conduct an in-depth comparison of the profile and content of VET programmes and their resulting qualifications to support mutual learning between countries and allow stakeholders to evaluate their individual priorities and choices.

Cedefop’s ‘Digitalisation, AI and the future of work’ project analyses the impact and drivers of digitalisation and automation, spurred by advanced in robotics, artificial intelligence (AI) and other digital technologies, on employment and changing skill needs and skill mismatch. It also examines the implications of digitalisation for new forms of work and learning, such as platform or gig work, or remote ICT-based work. The insights of the project aim to inform policy regarding the future of vocational education and training.

Cedefop conducts research and develops tools to empower VET policy-makers and practitioners to tackle early leaving from education and training (ELET).

The European Company Survey explores the strategies deployed by companies to meet their skill needs, through recruitment, HR development practices and work organisation; with special emphasis will be put on the impact of digitalisation.

The European Union (EU) has several common instruments helping individuals in transfer, recognition and accumulation of their assessed learning outcomes, to achieve a qualification or to take part in lifelong learning. The European credit system for vocational education and training (ECVET) is one of these instruments; it uses flexible and individualised learning pathways, including transnational mobility.

The European Qualifications Framework (EQF) is a common European reference framework whose purpose is to make qualifications more readable and understandable across different countries and systems. Covering qualifications at all levels and in all sub-systems of education and training, the EQF provides a comprehensive overview over qualifications in the 38 European countries currently involved in its implementation. In close cooperation with the European Commission, Cedefop provides analytical and coordination support for the implementation of the EQF and carries out a number of comparative studies and analysis on issues related to the implementation of the framework at EU, national and sectoral level.

The European skills and jobs survey (ESJS) is Cedefop’s own periodic EU-wide survey aimed at collecting information on the skill requirements, skill mismatches and initial and continuing learning of adult workers in EU labour markets.

The objective of a skills system is not only to continually develop the skills of the population, but also to activate and effectively match these skills to the needs of employers in the labour market. Cedefop's European Skills Index (ESI) is a composite indicator that measures the performance of a country’s skills system. ESI monitors member states performance over time and identifies areas calling for improvement. ESI can assist the implementation of the European Pillar of Social Rights.

The project's objective is to monitor EU member states’ strategies and mechanisms for financing vocational education and training (VET) and to investigate their effectiveness and efficiency. This site provides information on investment in VET and on developments in VET funding systems and instruments. The analysis focuses on cofinancing, looking at roles of different stakeholders in sharing costs and responsibilities in VET.

The Future of vocational education and training (VET) project, covering the 27 EU Member States as well as Iceland, Norway and the UK, will contribute to a better overall understanding of the challenges and opportunities facing European VET in the coming years.

Purely occupation-specific skills are not enough for vocational education and training (VET) learners to adapt to new life situations and career shifts, manage change, take initiative and risk, innovate, and engage in further learning; they also require key competences.

To support development of learning at work in Europe there is a need to increase awareness of training and adult learning’s positive impact on enterprise innovation and competitiveness.

The learning outcomes principle is - explicitly since 2004 - systematically promoted in the EU policy agenda for education, training and employment. The learning outcomes approach binds together important European tools developed during the last decade, notably the European Qualification Frameworks (EQF). At national level, the learning outcomes form the basis on which national qualifications frameworks  are built and is increasingly influencing the definition and writing of qualifications and curricula as well as the orientation of assessment and teaching and training.  

Lifelong guidance aims to provide career development support for individuals of all ages, at all career stages. It includes careers information, advice, counselling, assessment of skills and mentoring. Quality guidance services should be available to all individuals, regardless of their employment situation, socioeconomic status, ethnicity or gender. Cedefop’s lifelong guidance project develops research and knowledge exchange for the improvement of guidance and counselling across the European Union.

The project will provide a better understanding of the role played by micro-credentials in supporting labour-market-related and employment-relevant education, training and learning. The project findings will offer new knowledge on the characteristics of micro-credentials, their added value to individual learners and employees, as well as their impact on existing qualifications and recognition systems.

The IVET mobility scoreboard is a tool for monitoring developments in IVET mobility policies and the implementation of the 2011 Council recommendation 'Youth on the move' in European countries.

Frameworks help to make qualifications easier to understand and compare. They can also encourage countries to rethink and reform national policy and practice on education, training and lifelong learning.  

National qualifications frameworks (NQFs) classify qualifications by level, based on learning outcomes.  This classification reflects the content and profile of qualifications - that is, what the holder of a certificate or diploma is expected to know, understand, and be able to do.  The learning outcomes approach also ensures that education and training sub-systems are open to one another. Thus, it allows people to move more easily between education and training institutions and sectors.

In 2016 Cedefop launched its first ever opinion survey aimed at investigating European citizens’ opinions on Vocational Education and Training (VET). A total of 35,646 interviews were conducted among the citizens of the Member States. The survey provides unprecedented data on European’s opinions on awareness, attractiveness and effectiveness of vocational education and training in Europe.

Quality assurance in VET is a key priority at EU level to promote increased transparency of VET policy developments between Member States, thereby enhancing mutual trust, mobility of workers and learners, and lifelong learning. In cooperation with the European Commission, Cedefop supports the implementation of the EQAVET Recommendation of 2009 at EU, national and sectoral level.

In this project Cedefop monitors and analyses progress towards achieving targets in vocational education and training (VET) that have been agreed within the process of cooperation in VET since 2002 (known as Copenhagen process). The priorities of this cooperation were agreed by the European Commission, EU Member States, candidate countries and social partners.

Environmental change is an increasingly important driver of labour demand and skills supply across all sectors. Therefore, the positive impacts of the transition to a greener economy can be maximised by simultaneously developing the skills, knowledge and competences required by resource-efficient processes and technologies; and integrating these into businesses and communities. To this end, Cedefop’s relevant work explores employment effects, skill requirements and policy implications of the transition towards a greener economy. The main aims are to investigate the expected impact of environmental and climate change policies on future skills demand within and across sectors, and to provide insights for effective training and education policies and initiatives.

Cedefop Skills Forecast provides comprehensive information on future labour market trends in Europe. The forecast acts as an early warning mechanism to help alleviating potential labour market imbalances and support different labour market actors in making informed decisions.

Information on skills that employers demand from jobseekers can support citizens in making better career and training choices. In today’s dynamic labour market, understanding employers’ requirements is also crucial for employment services and guidance counsellors to assess individual training needs, and for training providers to adapt curricula and training programmes so that they provide the skills the labour market demands. Policy-makers can benefit from up-to-date insight into current and emerging skill needs and new jobs being created, helping them shape forward-looking employment and skills policies.

Teaching professionals and leaders in VET: who are they?

The teaching workforce involved in delivering VET programmes can be divided into different types of occupation. While the titles for professionals working in VET may vary according to the context of VET provision in each country, four distinct categories can be identified in initial vocational education and training (IVET).

The importance to Europe of skilled and knowledgeable citizens extends beyond formal education to learning acquired in non-formal or informal ways. Citizens must be able to demonstrate what they have learned, to use this learning in their career and for further education and training.

VET in Europe is the most comprehensive information resource on vocational education and training (VET) systems in Europe. ReferNet, Cedefop’s European network, provides descriptions of national VET systems in the European Union, Norway and Iceland based on a common template designed by Cedefop.

Cedefop’s work on VET statistics and indicators supports evidence-based policy and practice in VET. It works to improve the availability, quality, relevance, use, analysis and dissemination of data on initial and continuing VET, adult learning and skill development, including labour market and other VET-related data. Cedefop cooperates with key stakeholders to develop and improve international statistics, including Eurostat and OECD. Project outputs include online access to statistical data and indicators at European and country level related to European VET policy, publications, data insights, analyses and updates to help interpret data meanings and trends.