Education and training statistics introduced

Latest update of text: July 2023.

Alongside the provision of health care, public expenditure on education is often considered as one of the most important investments that can be made in people. Education has the potential to drive socioeconomic development forward: this is particularly the case in a globalised world, where a highly-skilled workforce can be an advantage in terms of productivity, innovation and competitiveness.

Education, vocational training and more generally lifelong learning (LLL) play a vital role in both an economic and social context. The opportunities which the European Union (EU) offers its citizens for living, studying and working in other countries make a major contribution to cross-cultural understanding, personal development and the achievement of the EU’s full economic potential.

The consolidated versions of the Treaty on European Union and of the Treaty establishing the European Community acknowledge the importance of these areas by stating that ‘the Community shall contribute to the development of quality education by encouraging cooperation between Member States and, if necessary, by supporting and supplementing their action ... The Community shall implement a vocational training policy which shall support and supplement the action of the Member States’. As such, the European Commission follows up on policy cooperation and work with the EU Member States, while funding various programmes.

This article starts by explaining several EU education-related policy issues and concludes by introducing Eurostat’s statistics on education and training.

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European Year of Skills

The European Commission has designated the period from 9 May 2023 to 8 May 2024 as the ‘European Year of Skills’.

The European Year of Skills is designed to ‘promote reskilling and upskilling, helping people to get the right skills for quality jobs’. It should also provide fresh impetus to help the EU reach two of its social targets that form part of the European Pillar of Social Rights Action Plan: to have, by 2030, at least 60 % of adults in training every year, and at least 78 % in employment. Embedded within the European Year of Skills, the European Vocational Skills Week (23–27 October 2023) will outline how vocational education and training is key for people of all ages to upskill and reskill for their personal development and careers.

European Education Area

A Council Resolution on a strategic framework for European cooperation in education and training towards the European Education Area and beyond, was adopted by the Council in February 2021. It seeks to remove barriers to learning and improve access to quality education for all people through five strategic priorities over the period 2021–2030:

improving quality, equity, inclusion and success for all in education and training;
making lifelong learning and mobility a reality for all;
enhancing competences and motivation in the education profession;
reinforcing European higher education;
supporting the green and digital transitions in and through education and training.

Seven EU-level targets have been introduced for monitoring progress. They define benchmarks against which performance across education and training may be judged and refer to levels of EU average performance. They are as follows:

the share of low-achieving 15-year-olds in reading, mathematics and science should be less than 15 %, by 2030;
the share of low-achieving eighth-graders (generally 13-year-olds) in computer and information literacy should be less than 15 %, by 2030;
at least 96 % of children between the age of three and the age for starting compulsory primary education should participate in early childhood education and care, by 2030;
the share of early leavers from education and training should be less than 9 %, by 2030;
the share of 25–34 year-olds with tertiary educational attainment should be at least 45 %, by 2030;
the share of recent graduates from VET benefiting from exposure to work-based learning during their vocational education and training should be at least 60 %, by 2025;
at least 47 % of people aged 25–64 should have participated in adult learning during the previous 12 months, by 2025.

For the latest data on these seven targets, please refer to Eurostat’s website – Education and training – Policy context.

The European Education Area’s strategic framework promotes collaboration between EU Member States and key stakeholders and allows the monitoring of progress towards the achievement of their collective vision. It does so by:

strengthening means of policy cooperation;
enhancing synergies with other relevant initiatives, including the European Research Area and the Bologna Process;
identifying targets and indicators to guide work and monitor progress;
fostering the integration of education and training into the European Semester process.

Digital Education Action Plan

The Digital Education Action Plan (2021–2027) is a renewed EU policy initiative to support the sustainable and effective adaptation of education and training systems to the digital age. It was adopted in September 2020 and contributes towards achieving a number of the European Commission’s priorities:

A Europe fit for the digital age;
NextGenerationEU, which aims to create a greener, more digital, healthy, strong and equal EU;
the European Education Area by 2025;
the European Skills Agenda by 2025;
the European Pillar of Social Rights Action Plan, which includes three key social policy targets by 2030 (one of which seeks to ensure that at least 60 % of all adults should participate in training every year);
the Digital Decade, which has a number of specific targets and objectives to guide the EU’s digital transformation through to 2030.

The Digital Education Action Plan sets out two strategic priorities:

1. fostering the development of a high-performing digital education system, including:

infrastructure, connectivity and digital equipment;
effective digital capacity planning and development, including up-to-date organisational capabilities;
digitally competent and confident teachers and education and training staff;
high-quality learning content, user-friendly tools and secure platforms which respect e-privacy rules and ethical standards.

2. enhancing digital skills and competences for the digital transformation, requiring:

basic digital skills and competences from an early age;
digital literacy, including tackling disinformation;
computing education;
good knowledge and understanding of data-intensive technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI);
advanced digital skills, which produce more digital specialists;
ensuring that girls and young women are equally represented in digital studies and careers.

Vocational education and training

Vocational education and training (VET) prepares people for work (to qualify them for the labour market) and develops skills so that they remain employable and respond to the needs of the economy. It provides learners with essential skills that enhance their employability and support their personal development. In a broader context, VET may boost enterprise performance, competitiveness, research and innovation.

Initial vocational education and training (I-VET) is usually carried out at upper secondary level and post-secondary level before students begin their working life. It takes place either in a school-based environment (mainly in the classroom) or in a work-based setting (such as training centres and companies). Continuing VET (C-VET) usually takes place after initial education and training or after beginning working life. It aims to upgrade knowledge, to help people acquire new skills and to retrain and further personal and professional development; it is largely work-based.

European cooperation on VET dates back to 2002 and the Copenhagen process, when plans were put in place to enhance European cooperation (matching what had previously been done for higher education – the Bologna process – with a similar process for VET). The principal objectives of the Copenhagen declaration included to:

develop a framework for the transparency of qualifications and competences;
cooperate in quality assurance;
establish a credit transfer system for VET;
strengthen policies, systems and practices for lifelong guidance;
support the development of qualifications and competences at sectoral level;
give attention to the learning needs of teachers and trainers.

Policy developments in relation to VET were subsequently enhanced, for example through the Riga conclusions (2015), which provided a new set of medium-term (2015–2020) deliverables in the field of VET.

Subsequently, VET was identified as a focus area for cooperation under the European Education Area initiative. On 24 November 2020, the Council of the EU adopted a Recommendation on vocational education and training for sustainable competitiveness, social fairness and resilience (2020/C 417/01). It defines key principles for ensuring that vocational education and training in the EU adapts swiftly to labour market needs and provides quality learning opportunities for young people and adults alike. It places a strong focus on the increased flexibility of vocational education and training, reinforced opportunities for work-based learning, apprenticeships and improved quality assurance.

On 30 November 2020, ministers in charge of vocational education and training from EU Member States, European social partners and the European Commission endorsed the Osnabrück Declaration on vocational education and training as an enabler of recovery and just transitions to digital and green economies. It sets out new policy actions for the period of 2021–2025 to complement the Council Recommendation on vocational education and training for sustainable competitiveness, social fairness and resilience, namely to:

promote resilience and excellence through quality, inclusive and flexible VET;
establish a new lifelong learning culture emphasising the relevance of C-VET and digitalisation;
foster the sustainability of VET;
develop a European education and training area and international VET.

Renewed agenda for higher education

Higher education occupies a unique position at the crossroads of education, research and innovation, serving society and the economy. There are a broad range of higher education institutions across the EU ranging from universities, research and technology institutes to vocational education and training institutions, or schools of art/design.

In May 2017, the European Commission adopted a Communication on a renewed EU agenda for higher education (COM(2017) 247 final), focusing on four priority activities:

tackling future skills mismatches and promoting excellence in skills development;
building inclusive and connected higher education systems;
ensuring higher education institutions contribute to innovation;
supporting effective and efficient higher education systems.

The Communication also proposed to streamline EU support for higher education by:

creating a knowledge hub to enhance data quality, comparability, data collection and indicators and draw lessons from the implementation of EU higher education data tools to date;
strengthening the work of the Eurydice network and cooperation with the OECD to avoid duplication of efforts;
simplifying student mobility by building on existing Erasmus+ projects for the electronic exchange of student data and exploring the feasibility of establishing an electronic student identification system;
initiating a discussion on efficient support to students, staff, institutions and higher education systems.

The European Commission has a number of other higher education initiatives that are intended to enable the higher education sector to adapt and thrive post COVID-19; they are based on shared values, such as excellence and inclusion. The following list provides a summary of some recent initiatives.

Micro-credentials certify the learning outcomes of short-term learning experiences: they offer a flexible, targeted way to help people develop the knowledge, skills and competences they need for their personal and professional development. The EU has put in place a set of recommendations to support the development, implementation and recognition of micro-credentials across institutions, businesses, sectors and borders, promoting lifelong learning through shorter forms of leaning opportunities, to ensure that everyone has the knowledge, skills and competences they need to thrive in their personal and professional lives.
A Communication on a European strategy for universities (COM(2022) 16 final) outlined plans to develop ‘European universities’ – transnational alliances of higher education institutions based on long-term structural and strategic cooperation – as a key pillar of the European Education Area. By mid-2024, the initiative aims to support the establishment of 60 European universities – designed to enable Europeans to cooperate across languages, borders and disciplines – bringing together more than 500 higher education institutions.
The European Student Card Initiative (ESCI) is designed to promote student mobility across Europe, through a European student card (for students to benefit from a range of services), an Erasmus+ App (to assist with practical administrative steps), and a range of digital solutions to connect higher education institutions (so they may better manage Erasmus+ mobile students).

Erasmus+

The Erasmus programme was one of the most well-known European programmes and ran for just over a quarter of a century; in 2014 it was superseded by the EU’s programme for education and training, youth and sport, referred to as Erasmus+. The programme’s current funding period runs from 2021 to 2027. It has an estimated budget of €26.2 billion (which is nearly double the funding of the first funding period (2014–2020)).

The Erasmus+ programme supports priorities and activities set out in the European Education Area, Digital Education Action Plan and the European Skills Agenda. It also:

supports the European Pillar of Social Rights;
implements the EU Youth Strategy 2019–2027;
develops the European dimension in sport.

Erasmus+ offers mobility and cooperation opportunities in higher education, vocational education and training, school education (including early childhood education and care), adult education, youth and sport. The programme has four overarching priorities – inclusion, digital, green, democratic participation. It is designed so that Europeans from all backgrounds may benefit from the opportunities offered, which provide real life-changing experiences, with positive effects on professional, social, educational and personal development. The programme aims at being more inclusive by improving participation rates among vulnerable and under-represented groups. Through developing digital skills and competences in areas such as combating climate change, clean energy, artificial intelligence, robotics or big data analysis, it may contribute to sustainable growth and ensure equity, prosperity and social inclusion, while supporting and facilitating transnational and international cooperation in the fields of education, training, youth and sport may help strengthen European identity and the participation of young people in democratic processes.

Erasmus+ supports three key actions:

learning mobility for individuals, both within the EU and beyond, for example through study and training, traineeships, and teaching and professional development;
cooperation among organisations and institutions – for innovation and the exchange of good practices – between educational institutions, or between educational institutions and youth organisations, businesses, local and regional authorities and non-governmental organisations (NGOs);
support for policy development and cooperation – designed to promote the active participation of young people in democratic life.

The latest information available concerning the reach and impact of Erasmus+ concerns 2021; as such, the results were impacted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Student participation was down on pre-pandemic levels (especially though to the summer). Nevertheless, there were 649 000 students or staff members who studied, trained or volunteered abroad in 2021 thanks to Erasmus+, with around one tenth of these having a low level of opportunity (special needs, from disadvantaged backgrounds, or from outermost regions of the EU). In 2021, Erasmus+ provided funds to 19 000 projects that were spread over 71 000 organisations, with a budget of €2.9 billion.

European Pillar of Social Rights

The European Pillar of Social Rights Action Plan sets out 20 key principles that are considered essential for fair and well-functioning labour markets and social protection systems. It lays out three headline targets for the EU to reach by 2030, with one of these in the domain of education and training, namely that, by 2030, at least 60 % of all adults should participate in training every year.

In the context of recovery from the COVID-19 crisis and the digital and green transitions, the desire to see adult participation in training rise to 60 % is considered paramount if the EU is to improve employability, boost innovation, ensure social fairness and close the digital skills gap. A key factor of success will be to ensure that adults are able to engage in upskilling and reskilling later in life. To do so, the EU has announced a number of related targets that seek to strengthen and increase adult participation in training. One of these concerns at least 80 % of people aged 16–74 having basic digital skills, a precondition for inclusion and participation in the labour market and society in a digitally transformed Europe.

Education and training statistics

The measurement of progress towards the objectives described above requires a broad range of comparable statistics. Eurostat’s education and training statistics describe education and training systems in the EU, alongside their outcomes, including data for:

participation in education and training (including adult learning);
learning mobility;
education personnel;
education finance;
education and training outcomes;
language learning and self-reported language skills.

The standards for international statistics on education are set by three international organisations:

the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) Institute for Statistics (UIS);
the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD);
Eurostat, the statistical office of the EU.

The main source of data is a joint UNESCO/OECD/Eurostat (UOE) data collection on education statistics. This is the basis for the core components of Eurostat’s database on education statistics. In combination with the joint data collection, Eurostat also collects data on regional enrolments and foreign language learning. Education statistics for educational attainment and adult learning are principally provided through household surveys, in particular the EU labour force survey (EU-LFS), which is complemented by an adult education survey (AES) and the continuing vocational training survey (CVTS).

The UOE data collection exercise is based on administrative sources, with the data compiled by education ministries or national statistical authorities. Reference periods are the calendar year for data on expenditure and the school/academic year (classified to the calendar year in which the school/academic year finishes) for all other non-financial data.

The international standard classification of education (ISCED) is the basis for international education statistics, describing nine different levels of education.

More information about the joint data collection is available in an article on the UOE methodology.

More information and annual reports on the EU’s programme supporting education, training, youth and sport – Erasmus+ – is available on the European Commission’s website.