- 2017Design
- 2018Design
- 2019Design
- 2020Pilot
- 2021Pilot
- 2022Pilot
- 2023Pilot
- 2024Pilot
Background
Tracking VET graduates (i.e. following recent graduates in Flanders for a year in their search for a first job) provides information on their employability and actual employment. This information is useful for adjusting existing and future VET programmes to better align the offer with the labour market needs. It also provides a guidance for learners in their choice of a VET programme: will this path lead to employment?
Objectives
To link data on learning pathways with information on labour market participation more easily.
Description
In 2017, progress was made towards more easily linking administrative data on learning pathways with information on labour market participation. Based on an agreement between the Flemish public employment service (VDAB) and the Flemish Ministry of Education and Training, schools will, in the future, receive data not only on the progression of their graduates towards higher education (as was the case so far) but also on the transition of their IVET graduates to the labour market. VDAB and the Flemish Ministry of Education and Training agreed on a common monitoring profile wherein the number of indicators is increased from two to five: labour market position (working/seeking job/inactive); work experience; work regime; sector of employment; and remuneration.
VDAB delivers information on labour market participation of IVET graduates at the level of field of study, to provide information to support the study choice.
In 2019, partners designed a plan to link administrative data on learning pathways more easily with information on labour market participation.
In 2020, a pilot was started with the Belgian Crossroads Bank for Social Security to link administrative data on learning pathways with information on labour market participation.
In 2021, VDAB and the Flemish Ministry of Education and Training are still in the process of receiving and examining the data from the Belgian Crossroads Bank for Social Security.
In 2022, VDAB and the Flemish Ministry of Education and Training are still in the process of receiving and examining the data from the Belgian Crossroads Bank for Social Security.
In 2023, VDAB and the Flemish Department of Education and Training are still in the process of receiving and examining the data from the Belgian Crossroads Bank for Social Security.
In 2024, VDAB and the Flemish Department of Education and Training are still in the process of receiving and examining the data from the Belgian Crossroads Bank for Social Security.
Bodies responsible
- Flemish Department of Education and Training
- Flemish public employment service (VDAB)
Target groups
Learners
- Learners in upper secondary, including apprentices
- Young people (15-29 years old)
- Learners at risk of early leaving or/and early leavers
Education professionals
- Teachers
- School leaders
- Guidance practitioners
Entities providing VET
- VET providers (all kinds)
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.
High-quality and timely skills intelligence is a powerful policy tool, helping improve economic competitiveness and fostering social progress and equality through the provision of targeted skills training to all citizens (Cedefop, 2020). Skills intelligence is the outcome of an expert-driven process of identifying, analysing, synthesising and presenting quantitative and/or qualitative skills and labour market information. Skills intelligence draws on data from multiple sources, such as graduate tracking systems, skills anticipation mechanisms, including at sectoral and regional levels. Actions related to establishing and developing such systems fall under this thematic sub-category.
European priorities in VET
VET Recommendation
- VET agile in adapting to labour market challenges
Osnabrück Declaration
- Resilience and excellence through quality, inclusive and flexible VET
Subsystem
Further reading
Country
Type of development
Cedefop, & ReferNet. (2025). VET graduate tracking: Belgium-FL. In Cedefop, & ReferNet. (2025). Timeline of VET policies in Europe (2024 update) [Online tool].
https://www.cedefop.europa.eu/en/tools/timeline-vet-policies-europe/search/28008