Developing a new methodology to recognise vocational qualifications…

Developing a new methodology to recognise vocational qualifications across Europe

Helping Cedefop create a practical, evidence-based approach so vocational qualifications gained in one European country are properly recognised in another

Research & evaluation

European

Education & training

Employment

Funding period

May 2026 — May 2028

Client

The European Centre for Vocational Education and Training - CEDEFOP

Key people

Kari P. Hadjivassiliou

Dr. Thomas Spielhofer

Crowded pedestrian street in a historic town, people walking in groups, storefronts and light-coloured buildings with a soft overall blur, image from tavisntitute.org, image from tavisntitute.org

This project continues our focus on turning comparative, multi-country evidence on qualifications and the labour market in Europe into practical tools for policymakers and employers.

What’s the project about?

Someone trained as a social care practitioner or electrician in one European country doesn’t always find that qualification recognised if they move to work in another. This creates real barriers to labour mobility across the EU.

Cedefop has commissioned a five-partner consortium, led by ICF, to develop a practical methodology that helps countries, employers and training providers recognise foreign vocational qualifications more consistently.

The study runs in three connected stages. The first reviews existing international, regional and national frameworks and tools for recognising vocational qualifications. The second carries out detailed case studies in eight countries (Denmark, Ireland, the Netherlands, Portugal, France, Germany, Poland and Austria), looking at how recognition actually works in practice. The third brings the findings together into a clear, user-oriented methodology, tested and refined with stakeholders including employers, training providers and recognition bodies.

The Tavistock Institute work package

We are leading Work Assignment 1: the review of international, regional and national recognition frameworks and methodologies, through our German hub Tavistock Institut gGmbH. This is the foundation the rest of the study builds on.

The work includes:

carrying out a comprehensive literature review covering 2014 to 2025
conducting scoping interviews with EU-level stakeholders
developing the conceptual framework and glossary of terms that will shape how recognition practices are compared across countries in the later stages of the study

How this fits into our work

This project sits within our long track record of skills and labour-market research for EU institutions. Our German hub Tavistock Institut gGmbH has previously worked with Cedefop, the European Commission, the European Parliament and Eurofound on comparative studies of learning outcomes, upskilling pathways and qualifications systems.

Kari Hadjivassiliou, together with colleagues Anna Sophie Hahne and Dr Thomas Spielhofer, co-authored Eurofound’s 2023 report on measures to tackle labour shortages across Europe, drawing on 30 case studies to identify what works in training, upskilling and reskilling. The team also led a three year programme of work commissioned by CEDEFOP which explored in depth issues around the recognition of skills and qualifications across the EU.