Regular surveys to inform the development of VET

Policy development
Practical measure/Initiative
Estonia
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Timeline
  • 2016Implementation
  • 2017Implementation
  • 2018Implementation
  • 2019Implementation
  • 2020Implementation
  • 2021Completed
ID number
28158

Objectives

Goals and objectives of the policy development.

Regular overviews of labour market needs in different economic sectors, teachers´ and graduates´ satisfaction surveys and graduate tracking surveys provide input to policy development, planning of training provision and financing of VET and adult education.

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 following regular surveys are conducted under the Labour market and education cooperation programme:

  1. satisfaction surveys;
  2. graduate tracking (including employability and income) surveys;
  3. analyses on labour requirements of different economic sectors (OSKA reports).

A student, teacher and graduate satisfaction surveys' wave was carried out in 2017-18. The results of the graduate satisfaction survey were published in 2017. Student and teacher survey reports were published in 2019.

A survey on the transition of VET and higher education graduates to the labour market (graduate tracking) is also carried out annually. In 2017, the survey analysed the employability and incomes of the 2011-15 VET and higher education graduates. The results were published online. VET schools and VET stakeholders can easily get access to data on the average incomes of VET graduates by schools and by fields of studies.

The labour market needs monitoring and skills forecasting system, OSKA, provides regular analyses of the developmental potential and labour requirements of different economic sectors in Estonia. Five economic sectors are examined per year. OSKA analyses provide input for matching initial and continuous training provision to labour market needs.

2016
Implementation
2017
Implementation
2018
Implementation
2019
Implementation

In 2019, the graduate tracking survey focused on the correspondence between the field of study and employment of recent graduates, in addition to employability and incomes.

Five OSKA reports were prepared in the following sectors:

  1. Film and video, Art and design, Journalism, Content creation, and Language, marketing and communications and printing;
  2. Performing arts, Music, Libraries, Museology, Crafts, and Sport;
  3. Real estate services and Facility maintenance;
  4. Security and Law;
  5. Water, waste and environmental management.

Since 2016, 21 OSKA sector reports have been compiled.

2020
Implementation

In 2020, the scheduled satisfaction survey of VET stakeholders was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The graduate tracking survey primarily focused on higher education, specifically graduates of smart specialisation curricula and doctoral studies. Five OSKA reports were prepared in the following sectors: Business education, Financial sector, Manufacturing industry, Personal services, and Public administration.

2021
Completed

In 2021, a VET stakeholder satisfaction survey was conducted. The graduate tracking survey mapped the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the employment of vocational and higher education graduates, and on their income and wage dynamics.

Five OSKA reports were prepared in the following sectors or topics: Manufacturing industry, Personal services, Skills necessary for digital and green transition, Occupations not covered in OSKA's sectoral reports, and Effects of COVID-19 on labour and skills needs.

As of 2021, the activity runs as a regular practice (regular surveys, graduate tracking and reports).

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
  • Estonian Qualifications Authority

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

  • Learners in upper secondary, including apprentices
  • Adult learners

Education professionals

  • Teachers
  • Trainers
  • School leaders
  • Adult educators
  • Guidance practitioners

Entities providing VET

  • Companies
  • Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)
  • VET providers (all kinds)

Other stakeholders

  • Social partners (employer organisations and trade unions)

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.

Establishing and developing skills intelligence systems

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.

Subsystem

Part of the vocational education and training and lifelong learning systems the policy development applies to.
IVET
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.
Surveys, statistics and analyses on the website of the Ministry of Education and Research
OSKA Sectoral reports prepared by Estonian Qualifications Authority

Country

Estonia

Type of development

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

Cedefop, & ReferNet. (2025). Regular surveys to inform the development of VET: Estonia. 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/28158