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Most European countries have formally adopted national qualifications frameworks (NQFs) to integrate new qualifications and competencies in TVET, facilitate skills recognition, and provide pathways for learners
According to Cedefop, 39 countries across Europe – defined as EU Member States, EEA countries, EU candidate countries, potential candidate countries and Switzerland – have developed NQFs. However, these NQFs are at different stages of implementation. As of 2018, 17 of these NQFs were at an early operational stage, while 21 were at an advanced operational stage. (Cedefop 2019)
36 of these European NQFs include formal qualifications from VET, general, higher and adult education – and thus provide pathways to further education via both the academic and vocational tracks. (Cedefop 2020)
Many European countries’ NQFs include qualifications awarded outside formal education and training by private providers, sectors, companies and international bodies – a development viewed as crucial to fostering lifelong learning and progression through different pathways. The number of European countries that have linked non-formal and informal learning to their NQFs has grown from 12 in 2010 to 31 in 2018. (Cedefop 2020)
In 2020, the European Commission invited countries to link their national qualifications databases to the new Europass portal, which was launched on 1 July 2020. The Europass portal acts as the EU’s central platform and single-entry point for accessing information on all qualifications contained in the various European NQFs to support their interoperability. (Cedefop 2020)
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NQFs must be regularly updated and rigorously implemented to maintain TVET stakeholder trust
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NQFs must be regularly updated and rigorously implemented to maintain TVET stakeholder trust
NQFs are “never-ending stories”: they are developed, extended and subject to regular revision as new qualifications are developed and mapped to them. Some countries face challenges keeping their NQF’s updated and relevant which can undermine stakeholders’ trust in them. (Cedefop 2019)
Implementation challenges: NQF’s are outcome oriented. They provide an upward pathway for learners based on their learning outcomes (in the form of a qualification) which can be linked to the EQF to facilitate mobility. Not all countries have a learning-outcomes-based description of qualifications, creating challenges for interoperability. Many are only available in their national language.
Lack of buy-in: The development of NQFs in Europe has been driven mainly by the formal education and training sector, with businesses and economic sectors often reluctant to embrace them. (Cedefop 2020)
It is possible these challenges will be overcome. The oldest NQFs in Europe – the UK, Irish and French, include all types of qualifications, both public and private, and accommodate non-formal and informal as well as formal learning. They are widely regarded as effective in aiding access to study and work opportunities and enjoy high trust among their end-users, including employers. (Cedefop 2019)
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Short, targeted modules resulting in micro-credentials are increasingly being adopted by European TVET stakeholders to offer flexible, inclusive and individually tailored education and training opportunities to learners
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Short, targeted modules resulting in micro-credentials are increasingly being adopted by European TVET stakeholders to offer flexible, inclusive and individually tailored education and training opportunities to learners
Over the past two decades, TVET stakeholders in Europe have created micro-credentials in response to labour market shifts in skills needs. Short courses leading to micro-credentials offer flexible, inclusive, learner-centred solutions to workers’ reskilling and upskilling needs in the face of disruptions. (Cedefop 2019)
Micro-credentials can be designed from breaking down formal qualifications into stand-alone modules (which carry credits) thereby empowering learners to create their own individually tailored learning and career pathways. They can provide the learner with credits towards a larger qualification and can be ‘stacked’, to achieve a nationally recognized qualification. (European Commission 2022)
Shorter stackable micro-credentials may be pursued with a more flexible time commitment and a lower financial outlay than traditional qualifications. They may offer more equitable and inclusive learning opportunities for disadvantaged and vulnerable groups, improving their access to education and training. (European Commission 2022)
Micro-credentials may be used to certify not only formal accredited training but also that supplied by non-formal or informal TVET providers, including employers and other labour market actors. They may also be integrated into NQFs to improve their transparency, portability and recognition. (European Commission 2022)
In May 2022, the European Commission adopted a ‘Recommendation on a European approach to micro-credentials for lifelong learning and employability’ to support the development, implementation and recognition of micro-credentials across institutions, businesses, sectors and borders in Europe. The Recommendation outlines standard elements that all EU micro-credentials should have to allow learners, education and training institutions, quality assurance agencies and employers to understand their value and content and to compare them. Common approaches to developing and using micro-credentials help to build trust in them. (European Commission 2022)
Courses leading to micro-credentials are designed to provide the learner with specific knowledge, skills and competences that respond to societal, personal, cultural or labour market needs.
(European Commission 2022)
UNESCO-UNEVOC International Centre
for Technical and Vocational Education and Training
UN Campus, Platz der Vereinten Nationen 1
53113 Bonn, Germany
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