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The [Erasmus Mundus] EM II (2009-2013) programme aims to enhance the quality of European higher education, to help improve the career prospects of students and to promote dialogue and understanding between peoples and cultures through international cooperation and to contribute to the sustainable development of third countries in the field of higher education, in accordance with [European Union] EU external policy objectives. [This report] draws on the findings of the interim evaluation of EM II regarding the results achieved and on the qualitative aspects of the implementation of the programme. It puts forward the European Commission's position on the main conclusions and recommendations of the interim evaluation. These conclusions and recommendations are based on extensive surveys and interviews of EM participants and key stakeholders.

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This paper aims to give an overview of European Skills/Competences, qualifications and Occupations (ESCO), it's three pillar approach and the level of its development. ESCO is a multi-lingual classification system based on the classification of occupations and skills/competences currently used on EURES, the European Job Mobility Portal. ESCO's three pillars consist of: (1) occupations; (2) skills and competences; and (3) qualifications. Show less

Since 2008 Europe has been suffering the effects of the most severe economic crisis it has seen in 50 years: for the first time in Europe there are over 25 million unemployed and in the majority of Member States small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have not yet been able to bounce back to their pre-crisis levels. To bring Europe back to growth and higher levels of employment, Europe needs more entrepreneurs. As a follow up to the Small Business Act review of April 2011 and of the Industrial policy communication adopted last October, the proposed action plan sets out a renewed vision and a number of actions to be taken at both [European Union] EU and Member States' level to support entrepreneurship in Europe. It is based on three pillars: developing entrepreneurial education and training; creating the right business environment; role models and reaching out to specific groups.

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Following the publication of ‘A memorandum of lifelong learning’ (indexed at TD/IRD 88.400) in October 2000, the European Commission invited Member States to launch a consultation process to collect together all views on how best to make progress in implementing lifelong learning. Feedback from the Europe-wide consultation was then used to develop the analysis and proposals in the Communication on ‘Making a European area of lifelong learning a reality’ (indexed at TD/IRD 88.264). National reports were submitted by each Member State as well as by candidate countries and Iceland and Norway. This document is the national report from Romania. It is presented in three main sections. The first section outlines the research methodology; the second section contains the preliminary results of the investigation presented under the six key messages in the Memorandum; and the final section contains examples of good practices in view of the six key messages.

Documents from ‘Making a European area of lifelong learning a reality’ are indexed from TD/TNC 77.521 to TD/TNC 77.539. Show less

This document, which accompanies the European Commission communication 'Rethinking education: investing in skills for better socio-economic outcomes', contains individual country summaries that highlight the main challenges to skill provision specific to the different European countries and outline the most significant measures adopted to respond to such challenges. The quantitative and qualitative evidence will provide essential elements for monitoring the implementation of the country-specific recommendations resulting from the European semester under the European 2020 strategy. Countries covered in Part I are: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Germany, Denmark, Estonia, Greece, Spain, Finland, France, Hungary, Ireland and Italy. Countries in part II are: Lithuania, Luxembourg, Latvia, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Sweden, Slovenia, Slovakia and United Kingdom. Show less

Currently, more than five million young people in the European Union (EU) are unemployed. It is becoming harder for young people to find work and some are deciding to either prolong their studies or going back to study. This could be a positive move for the future if the right skills are acquired. However, a large number of young people are neither working nor studying. The European Commission is proposing a Youth Opportunities Initiative to target those young people not in employment, education or training. Although most of the work will need to be done by the Member States, the EU can provide a supporting role through review of policies and performance and by providing financial support to national and cross-border initiatives. This report outlines the initiative's first steps in supporting skills development and school-to-work transitions. Show less

The 'Rethinking education' communication aims to help Member States by setting out a range of fields in which the efficiency of education and training systems can be improved. This document highlights the evidence base for the policy proposals outlined in the 'Rethinking education' communication on key competences. Its findings are based on analyses, coordinated by the Commission in cooperation with Member States, of best policy practice across the [European Union] EU and beyond, and on comparative data and current research. The focus of this document is on assessment of individual learners rather than evaluation of programs, institutions or systems. Section one, 'The key competences for European citizens in the knowledge society', provides a summary of what key competences are and which competences are currently being assessed. Section two, 'Strengthening assessment of all key competences: lessons from members states', illustrates how Member States have specified key competences in learning outcomes and how they have developed assessment for summative and formative purposes. It continues with implementation of assessment reforms and presents the other policy areas that need to be addressed to make reforms successful. Appendix one describes the key competences set out in the Recommendation of the European Parliament and the Council of 18 December 2006 on key competences for lifelong learning (the 'Key competences for lifelong learning - the European framework').

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Economic restructuring requires a flexible workforce with a range of transferable skills. This publication analyses the role of such skills in career pathways and the labour market, and levels of skill transferability across sectors in the current context and during the years leading up to 2020. It also looks at the roles of actors involved in promoting transferability and methods for enhancing job mobility, before making final recommendations. The appendices contain the following information: the [European Union] EU survey; good practice examples; EU workshops; knowledge and skills’ transferability in 2020; definitions of basic terms; importance of human capital stock during economic recession; methodological background of skills transferability analysis; outputs of skills transferability analysis; extended information on players and tools; and extended information on recommendations.

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This publication results from major reviews of national career guidance policies carried out by the OECD and the European Commission (EC) during 2001-2003. Australia, Austria, Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Korea, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain and the UK participated in the OECD review. The European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training (CEDEFOP) collected data from Belgium, France, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Portugal and Sweden for the EC, and the European Training Foundation (ETF) gathered data from Bulgaria, Cyprus, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia. A review by the World Bank was undertaken in 2003 in Chile, the Philippines, Poland, Romania, Russia, South Africa and Turkey. For each country, the reviews assessed how the organisation, management and delivery of career guidance services contribute to the implementation of lifelong learning and active labour market policies. Several common themes emerged from the reviews about deficiencies in national career guidance services. Many examples of good practice exist but there are major discrepancies between service organisation and delivery, and some key public policy goals. Practical solutions are provided for policy makers to address these issues. The publication covers the major policy domains involved in developing a comprehensive framework for lifelong guidance systems: meeting the career guidance needs of young people and of adults; widening access to career guidance; improving career information; staffing and funding career guidance services; and improving strategic leadership. For each of these policy areas, the publication: describes the key challenges for policy makers in trying to improve career guidance services; provides examples of good practice and of effective responses to these challenges, based on research conducted in 36 OECD and European countries; poses the questions that policy makers need to address in responding to these challenges; and provides practical options for improving policy. Show less

This volume presents the proceedings from an international conference on labour markets which was organised by the Ministries of Labour and Finance in Finland with the support of the OECD and the European Commission. It puts forward thinking on new policy measures focusing on the specific experiences of the United States, Japan, Finland and Denmark. The volume includes highlights from the conference and most of the interventions. The papers, presented by politicians, high level officials from the European Commission and the OECD Secretariat, social partners and academics, are divided into six parts. Part one, 'Opening session' contains: A comprehensive strategy works: Finland's experience in the 1990s / Paavo Lipponen; Europe's employment and social challenge: competitiveness and cohesion / Anna Diamantopoulou. Part two, 'Assessing international strategies' contains: Putting Europe to work / Allan Larsson; Implementing the OECD jobs strategy: assessing performance and policy / Jorgen Elmeskov; A comment / Edmond Malinvaud. Part three, 'Experiences in selected countries' contains: Neither too hot nor too cold: the U.S. economy in the 1990s / Robert J. Gordon; The Japanese employment system in the 1990s / Tsutomu Tanaka; The Finnish experiences in the 1990s / Oertti Sorsa. Part four, 'Making work pay' contains: Tax policy, unemployment benefits and structural unemployment / Martii Hetemaki; A comment / Jan Horst Schmidt; Employment promotion and transfer payments / Georg Fischer and Manuel Sanchis i Marco; What do we know about policies to make work pay? An overview / Mark Pearson and Stefano Scarpetta; A comment / Tor Eriksson. Part five, 'Preventive approaches against labour market exclusion' contains: Removing barriers to employment for groups at the margin of the labour market / Markku Lehto; Active and preventive approaches: a note based on the recent Danish experience / Per Callesen; A comment / David Stanton. Part six, 'Active labour market policies' contains: Active labour market policies: continuity and change / Juhani Lonnroth; What works among active labour market policies: evidence from OECD countries' experiences / John Martin. Show less