Information on skills demanded from job-seekers by employers is very useful to inform career and continuing VET decisions of individuals. In the very dynamic labour market of today, understanding employers’ requirements is also crucial for employment services and guidance counsellors to assess individual training needs, as well as for training providers to revise curricula and training programmes and tune them to current labour market demand. Policy-makers also feel the need to obtain up-to-date information on skill needs, new jobs being created as well as emerging skills. More...

Empowering young people by expanding and improving apprenticeships. Apprenticeships and other forms of work-based learning help young people make smoother transitions from school to employment. Thus, they are central to the development and implementation of the youth guarantee schemes. More...

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. More...

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. More...

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. More...

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. More...

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. More...

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. More...

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 39 European countries currently involved in its implementation. More...

Teachers and trainers working in vocational education and training (VET) are key actors to ensure its quality and relevance to today’s demands. They play an essential role in the implementation of reforms that have been part of the EU and national agendas. More...