- 2023Approved/Agreed
- 2024Implementation
- 2025Implementation
Background
Rapid societal and labour market changes, accelerated by the digital and green transitions and the aftermath of COVID-19, have widened the gap between formal education and evolving skill demands. Businesses struggle with skill shortages, while workers face shifting job requirements and new forms of work organisation.
To adapt, individuals need flexible, accessible, and targeted learning opportunities that support continuous upskilling and reskilling. Traditional education systems must become more adaptable, incorporating learner-centred approaches and collaborating with non-formal providers.
Micro-credentials offer a solution by certifying small, tailored learning experiences, allowing individuals to acquire specific skills needed for career transitions and lifelong learning. They complement, rather than replace, traditional qualifications, ensuring a more responsive and inclusive education and training system.
Objectives
The main objectives of the Micro-CVET proposal are as follows:
- conduct research to investigate, analyse, and evaluate the current landscape and best practices regarding micro-credentials policies and various approaches at the EU and international levels. Also, conduct desk research on current national legislation related to CVET;
- engage the relevant ministries, social partners, VET provider associations, and other stakeholders in a fact-finding process to discuss the national implications and expected outcomes of adopting micro-credentials in lifelong learning;
- draft an outline of a proposed approach for adopting micro-credentials within the Hellenic CVET context;
- finalise the draft proposal on linking micro-credentials to CVET, taking into account desk research and consultation findings. The final draft and its components will be the main focus of a targeted Peer Review, engaging NRPs with substantial experience in integrating micro-credentials into their national lifelong learning and adult education frameworks, as well as their National Qualifications Frameworks.
Description
The National Organisation for the Certification of Qualifications and Vocational Guidance (EOPPEP) represents Greece in various EU initiatives and networks. As the National Reference Point (NRP) of the European Network of Quality Assurance in VET (EQAVET), EOPPEP actively participates in Erasmus+ funded projects specifically designed for EQAVET NRPs.
In its role as an EQAVET NRP, EOPPEP is authorised to implement the Erasmus+ project, Continuing Vocational Training Link to Microcredentials (Micro-CVET). The approved proposal directly addresses the five objectives of the ERASMUS-EDU-2023-EQAVET-IBA Call, focusing on:
- launching a national initiative to implement and further exploit the EQAVET Framework in shaping a structured approach to micro-credentials;
- mobilising and engaging national stakeholders in a dialogue on integrating micro-credentials into the national CVET ecosystem;
- enhancing national quality assurance by conducting a holistic review of the CVET system;
- responding to evolving labour market demands, including the increasing need for digital and green skills development in the workforce;
- engaging experienced EU peers in micro-credentials development to review and evaluate the proposed national approach.
On 31 May 2023, it was announced that the proposal had been approved Subsequently, a grant agreement was officially signed and came into force on 26 June 2023. The project runs from 1 September 2023 to 31 August 2026.
During 2024, the following deliverables have been developed: a project management plan, a quality and evaluation plan, a risk management handbook, and a dissemination plan. Additionally, a Compendium of Best Practices in Microcredentials is set to be completed by the end of 2024.
The Compendium aims to systematically present best practices and success stories related to the integration of microcredentials into national qualification frameworks and VET systems. Its primary goal is to compile and structure all relevant and useful information on the topic, acknowledging that microcredentials remain a new and largely unexplored area that requires initial tracking and documentation.
In 2025, within the framework of the Micro-CVET project proposal, EOPPEP advanced several key deliverables and activities:
Deliverables completed in 2025:
The interim external project evaluation report (D1.4) was completed in 2025, providing an independent assessment of progress against the project objectives and identifying areas where further improvement could be achieved.
Within the framework of the approved proposal ‘Continuing vocational training linked to micro-credentials’ (Micro-CVET), EOPPEP also delivered the Compendium of best practices in micro-credentials (D3.1). This deliverable is based on an extensive comparative desk review of policies, trends and emerging practices related to micro-credentials at EU and international level. The compendium offers an overview of the evolving and diverse micro-credentials landscape and supports evidence-based policy development.
In parallel, EOPPEP completed the deliverable ‘State of play: national legislation on CVET’ (D3.2). This desk-based study presents a systematic review of Greek bibliographic sources, legislation, ministerial decisions and regulatory texts related to continuing vocational education and training (CVET) over the past decade, providing a consolidated overview of the national policy and legal framework.
Ongoing Activities (launched in 2025)
Since mid-October 2025, EOPPEP has launched a structured fact-finding process involving key stakeholders, based on three distinct and complementary methodologies. First, online questionnaires are being addressed to directors of VET providers. Second, face-to-face interviews are being conducted with senior officials from the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Labour and the Public Employment Service (DYPA), as well as with experts from Cedefop. Third, focus groups are being organised, bringing together stakeholders, policymakers and social partners.
Purpose of the Fact-Finding Process
This ongoing consultation aims to deepen understanding of the emerging ecosystem of micro-credentials in Greece and to support the development of a holistic national approach with two main objectives: First, it seeks to strengthen the link between micro-credentials and continuing vocational education and training (CVET), with a particular focus on upskilling and reskilling opportunities aligned with labour-market needs. Second, it aims to propose a quality assurance (QA) framework and supporting tools for short-term training programmes leading to micro-credentials, including mechanisms for reliable assessment of learning outcomes and validation of awarded ‘micro-qualifications’.
In the longer term, the Micro-CVET project is expected to contribute to improving the quality and relevance of adult learning, reducing skills gaps, and supporting access to targeted training opportunities for low-skilled adults. More broadly, the integration of micro-credentials is expected to support the modernisation and responsiveness of the CVET system in Greece in line with evolving economic and social needs.
Bodies responsible
- National Organisation for Certification of Qualifications and Vocational Guidance (EOPPEP)
Target groups
Learners
- Young people (15-29 years old)
- Young people not in employment, education or training (NEETs)
- Adult learners
Thematic categories
Transparency and portability of VET skills and qualifications
European principles and tools, such as EQF, ESCO, ECTS, Europass and ECVET, provide a strong basis for transparency and portability of national and sectoral qualifications across Europe, including the issuing of digital diplomas and certificates.
This thematic category looks at how individuals are supported in transferring, accumulating, and validating skills and competences acquired in formal, non-formal and informal settings – including learning on the job – and in having their learning recognised towards a qualification at any point of their lives. This is only possible if qualifications are transparent and comparable and are part of comprehensive national qualifications frameworks. Availability of qualifications smaller than full and acquirable in shorter periods of time is necessary; some countries have recently worked on developing partial qualifications, microcredentials, etc.
This thematic sub-category refers to the development and implementation of qualifications that are smaller than full qualifications (alternative credentials) or are acquired in a shorter learning experience. It includes microcredentials, partial qualifications, units of learning outcomes (ECVET principle), digital badges, etc. These are owned by learners and can be combined or not to get a full qualification.
Subsystem
Further reading
Country
Type of development
Cedefop, & ReferNet. (2026). The Micro-CVET project: Continuing vocational training link to microcredentials: Greece. In Cedefop, & ReferNet. (2026). Timeline of VET policies in Europe (2025 update) [Online tool].
https://www.cedefop.europa.eu/en/tools/timeline-vet-policies-europe/search/48572