Factors climàtics

EDUCATION PROGRAMMES

Short-cycle tertiary education at EQF level 5 is an important component of the EU 2020 strategy to support skills development and improved education attainment for meeting the changing needs of the labour market in the EU. The challenges faced in the EU are similar to those faced by countries in the Western Balkans and Turkey. Some EU Member States have already reformed their short-cycle higher education. Germany’s Berufsakademie, the French BTS, Swedish higher vocational education (YH), Italy’s Instruzione e Formazione Tecnica Superiore , Slovenia’s Višje Strokovne Škole, the UK’s Foundation Degrees, and the Dutch Associate Degrees offer diverse pathways into the labour market and into higher education with a strong component of workplace learning. These programmes are attractive to employers and to young people. They make it possible for initial VET graduates to pursue tertiary education degrees and to increase employability.

Notwithstanding these examples, in the EU and the ETF partner countries short-cycle tertiary education often sits somewhat uneasily in the grey zone between upper secondary VET and higher education. This may impede the development of such programmes to their full potential as an attractive option for young people. In addition, in some countries ISCED level 5A (the academic stream) is part of the higher education area whereas level 5B (the professional stream) is considered to be part of the upper secondary VET. A policy which defines both levels as tertiary education seems to be a more pragmatic

FIGURE 5: INVOLVEMENT OF SOCIAL PARTNERS IN SHORT-CYCLE HIGHER EDUCATION IN EU COUNTRIES (2010)

Source: Kirsch & Beernaert, 2010.

Chambers of Commerce Trade Unions Employment agencies Employers' organisations Individual organisations 11 1 2 5 9

way forward to increase the attractiveness of short-cycle higher education programmes, in line with the Bologna recommendations. A clear emphasis on quality and relevance remains equally important in this context. An additional route to supporting the integration of EQF level 5 programmes into the QF-EHEA and to improving national and international comparability is to link all EQF level 5 programmes to the Bologna process in terms of ECTS points. Even if most EQF level 5 programmes cover less than 180 ECTS points (the minimum required for a Bachelor degree), a reference to the ECTS system would enable a stronger link to other tertiary education

programmes in terms of access policies and credits. Most countries are engaged in important education reforms at all levels and this may slacken the focus on ISCED level 5B programmes. In the past, the Western Balkan countries have mainly focused on secondary and higher education. Recent EU support related to NQFs and the EQF aims to speed up the development of platforms for aligning education systems to the needs of the respective labour markets in a transparent manner. The alignment of education levels and competency profiles at various levels is expected to reinforce the streamlining of short-cycle higher education programmes into tertiary education.

From a policy perspective there is a need for greater public commitment to establish strong links between education and business for Europe’s competitiveness. This commitment is equally important for the Western Balkans and Turkey. A number of ongoing reforms in education reflect that policy-makers have started to pave the way for more synergetic relations between education and business at all levels including EQF level 5

programmes.

Finally, the involvement of social partners in the above reform agenda is growing, particularly through established tripartite councils and the organisation of internships. Despite the progress made in the Western Balkans and Turkey, the availability and quality of workplaces for training remains an important constraint, especially for ISCED level 5B programmes. Some EU countries have developed expertise and know-how in this specific area. To improve the quality of internships, intermediate organisations have been set up in the Netherlands to coordinate the dialogue between the education and economic sectors. These intermediate organisations also accredit companies which are interested in providing internships to students. Clear learning objectives and activities to be carried out are specified for internships in line with the qualification profile of the study programme. This professionalisation of internships has brought added value for both parties as students and companies have a better understanding of each other’s expectations and objectives. The accreditation of internship providers and the specification of the learning objectives and activities are an important policy element to improve the quality of internships. To increase the amount of internships, a number of EU countries have introduced tax incentives to promote active collaboration between the education and business sectors. Some countries of the countries discussed in this chapter are also exploring fiscal policy options to create business environments that are conducive to such collaboration.

Nonetheless, work on the various NQF/EQF and QF EHEA frameworks in the Western Balkans and Turkey still requires substantial efforts to grow to its full potential. The involvement of social partners remains a key factor for success at all levels of policy making and

implementation but this is also a rich and fruitful field for joint policy learning with EU countries.

9. FLEXICURITY: THE NEED FOR

STRONG SOCIAL PARTNERS VERSUS