- 2015Design
- 2016Approved/Agreed
- 2017Implementation
- 2018Implementation
- 2019Implementation
- 2020Approved/Agreed
- 2021Approved/Agreed
- 2022Design
- 2023Implementation
- 2024Implementation
Background
Training standards describe learning units consisting of learning outcomes and are based on occupational standards. They comprise key competences. Training standards are developed by representatives of companies from the respective sectors and of vocational education and training (VET) providers, with the methodological support of the National Centre for Technical and Vocational Education and Training Development, endorsed by the National Qualifications Authority. They are validated by employers and other social partners through sectoral committees. The revision of standards is carried out at least every five years or at the request of economic operators.
Objectives
To improve the relevance of initial vocational education and training (IVET) to the labour market needs and to update curricula in line with the needs of priority sectors and the green economy.
Description
In 2013-16, the training standards for IVET (131 initial VET qualifications at EQF level 3 and 69 qualifications at level 4) were revised and, in 2016, were approved by ministerial order.
The professional training standards have been adapted to new technological developments and labour market needs; they include learning outcomes. They were developed/updated for improved articulation between the stages of schooling and to support mobility in education and vocational training from the perspective of their relevance to the labour market.
The implementation of the revised curricula for grades nine and 10 of vocational schools and technological schools started in 2016/17 and continued in 2017/18. Implementation includes learning-outcomes-based assessment at the workplace for EQF level 3 professional qualifications in line with the training standards and developed in cooperation with company representatives. Curricula for grades 11 and 12 were revised in 2017 and approved in 2018.
In 2016, professional training standards revised in 2013-16 were approved by ministerial order and started to be implemented. VET teachers used the professional training standards in their teaching to facilitate the acquisition of key competences by learners.
The implementation of the revised curricula for grades nine and 10 of vocational school (three-year school-based VET programme) and technological school (4-year VET programme), started in 2016/17.
The implementation of the revised curricula for grades 9 and 10 of vocational school and technological school continued in 2018/19. It included learning outcomes-based assessment at the workplace for EQF level 3 professional qualifications in line with the training standards.
Curricula for grades 11 and 12 were approved in 2018.
In 2018/19, the methodological guidance for curriculum development was updated to ensure the involvement of the social partners in detailed development of the specific practical skills required by the local and/or regional labour market. Opportunities were created to deepen/extend the learning outcomes provided in the professional training standards to adapt to the specific technologies required by the local and/or regional labour market, which are not offered through the national component of the curriculum.
In 2020, the National Centre for TVET Development coordinated the development of the professional training standard for the qualification 'luthier' (level 3 EQF/NQF within the wood processing domain); this required to be adapted to the latest technological developments and includes learning outcomes correlated with the demands of the labour market.
The standard and the curriculum were approved by Ministry of Education (Order No 4408/28.05.2020). The qualification can be obtained at three-year VET (school and work-based) programmes (înva?amânt profesional) / its dual form.
In 2021, car electrician and subassembly fitting operator (level 3 EQF/NQF) standards and curricula were approved and made available for implementation in IVET as of 2021/22.
In 2022, to support climate neutral actions, improve living conditions and maintain healthy environment, the electrician in photovoltaic systems (level 3 EQF) standard was developed.
The National Centre for TVET Development also submitted for approval to the education ministry a methodology for developing and updating IVET qualifications. The methodology clarifies the development stages and roles of stakeholders.
In 2023/24, the National Centre for TVET Development coordinated the development of several professional training standards and curricula for new qualifications (level 3 EQF /NQF) which were demanded by labour market representatives:
- electrician for photovoltaic systems contributing to the training of the necessary workforce for the transition to a green economy.
- urban gardener supporting the acquisition of necessary skills to address climate change adaptation, biodiversity and well-being in the urban environment by training young students for the qualification of urban greening professionals
- and industrial robot operator determined by the impact of technology in the field of electronics/automatics.
The centre with the Romanian National Agency for Erasmus+, organised the national workshop"Green Technologies for Green Jobs" in December 2023, with the general objective of training teaching staff in IVET, regarding current developments in the field of batteries and rechargeable batteries. In addition to the specialized notions presented, topics were also addressed regarding the main priorities of the EU policies regarding the development of technologies for the Green Transition, the new regulations regarding batteries and the targets provided by the European Green Pact.
The centre also analysed the current IVET training standards, focusing on green and digital competences with the aim to introduce such competences in IVET qualifications after discussing with teachers. This stood as starting point for the development of a compendium of green and digital competences in IVET, included also in the EQAVET network activity
In 2024, the Ministry of Education approved the industrial robot operator training standard and curriculum (to be launched in 2025/26, based on Order of the Minister for Education no. 5419/2024).
The National Centre for TVET Development, invited IVET teachers to analyse training standards and identify green and digital skills by field of professional training, with a view to revising the professional qualifications and to reflect the orientation towards sustainability, green transition and digital competences.
In April 2024, the centre organised a face-to-face event and initiated the development of a compendium of green and digital skills, necessary for each field of initial professional training, taking into account present developments at European level (GreenComp and ESCO).
The centre also drafted a call for projects on adaptation of IVET to the dynamics of the labour market, including green skills, digital, technological and structural changes. It was approved in 2024 by the Ministry of Investments and European Projects. Activities included developing training standards and curricula for new IVET qualifications and reviewing the existing ones.
Bodies responsible
- National Centre for TVET Development (CNDIPT)
- National Qualifications Authority (ANC)
- Employers
- VET providers
Target groups
Learners
- Learners in upper secondary, including apprentices
Education professionals
- Teachers
- Trainers
- School leaders
Entities providing VET
- Companies
- VET providers (all kinds)
Other stakeholders
- Social partners (employer organisations and trade unions)
- National, regional and local authorities
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.
This thematic sub-category refers both to formal mechanisms of stakeholder engagement in VET governance and to informal cooperation among stakeholders, which motivate shared responsibility for quality VET. Formal engagement is usually based on legally established institutional procedures that clearly define the role and responsibilities for relevant stakeholders in designing, implementing and improving VET. It also refers to establishing and increasing the degree of autonomy of VET providers for agile and flexible VET provision.
In terms of informal cooperation, the sub-category covers targeted actions by different stakeholders to promote or implement VET. This cooperation often leads to creating sustainable partnerships and making commitments for targeted actions, in line with the national context and regulation, e.g. national alliances for apprenticeships, pacts for youth or partnerships between schools and employers. It can also include initiatives and projects run by the social partners or sectoral organisations or networks of voluntary experts and executives, retired or on sabbatical, to support their peers in the fields of VET and apprenticeships, as part of the EAfA.
Modernising VET offer and delivery
This thematic category looks at what and how individuals learn, how learning content and learning outcomes in initial and continuing VET are defined, adapted and updated. First and foremost, it examines how VET standards, curricula, programmes and training courses are updated and modernised or new ones created. Updated and renewed VET content ensures that learners acquire a balanced mix of competences that address modern demands, and are more closely aligned with the realities of the labour market, including key competences, digital competences and skills for green transition and sustainability, both sector-specific and across sectors. Using learning outcomes as a basis is important to facilitate this modernisation, including modularisation of VET programmes. Updating and developing teaching and learning materials to support the above is also part of the category.
The thematic category continues to focus on strengthening high-quality and inclusive apprenticeships and work-based learning in real-life work environments and in line with the European framework for quality and effective apprenticeships. It looks at expanding apprenticeship to continuing vocational training and at developing VET programmes at EQF levels 5-8 for better permeability and lifelong learning and to support the need for higher vocational skills.
This thematic category also focuses on VET delivery through a mix of open, digital and participative learning environments, including workplaces conducive to learning, which are flexible, more adaptable to the ways individuals learn, and provide more access and outreach to various groups of learners, diversifying modes of learning and exploiting the potential of digital learning solutions and blended learning to complement face-to-face learning.
Centres of vocational excellence that connect VET to innovation and skill ecosystems and facilitate stronger cooperation with business and research also fall into this category.
VET standards and curricula define the content and outcomes of learning, most often at national or sectoral levels. VET programmes are based on standards and curricula and refer to specific vocations/occupations. They all need to be regularly reviewed, updated and aligned with the needs of the labour market and society. They need to include a balanced mix of vocational and technical skills corresponding to economic cycles, evolving jobs and working methods, and key competences, providing for resilience, lifelong learning, employability, social inclusion, active citizenship, sustainable awareness and personal development (Council of the European Union, 2020). The thematic sub-category also refers to establishing new VET programmes, reducing their number or discontinuing some. It also includes design of CVET programmes and training courses to adapt to labour market, sectoral or individual up- and re-skilling needs.
The learning-outcomes-based approaches focus on what a learner is expected to know, to be able to do and understand at the end of a learning process (Cedefop, 2016). Learning outcomes can be defined at the system level as in national qualification frameworks (NQFs), most of which are currently based on learning outcomes. Learning outcomes can be defined in qualification standards, curricula, learning programmes and assessment, although the last one is still uncommon. This thematic sub-category refers to the use of learning outcomes in these contexts and to development and use of modules or units of learning outcomes in VET curricula and programmes.
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). Revising training standards in IVET: Romania. 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/28512