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This report illustrates schematic information on the structure of education systems in European countries, from pre-primary to tertiary level. It includes national diagrams, a guide to reading the diagrams and a map showing the main organisational models of primary and lower secondary education.

On 11 December, representatives of the European institutions reached an agreement on the Erasmus+ programme for the period 2021-2027. With a dedicated budget of over €26 billion, the new version of Europe's most emblematic programme will not only be more inclusive and international but also more digital and greener. It will cover all levels and types of education and training and it continues to boost cooperation on youth policy and to encourage participation in sport. It will support as well new flagship initiatives, such as European universities, Erasmus teacher academies, centres of professional excellence and DiscoverEU.

Did you miss our live panels? Watch them again on the Eurydice Facebook page, where we hosted a series of conversations on the history of European Cooperation in Education, Youth Work and Digital Skills and Digital Education.

This Eurydice Brief presents the main findings of the Eurydice report Equity in school education in Europe. The report provides an overview of education structures and policies that influence equity in school education. It connects these system-level features to student performance in international student assessment surveys (PISA, PIRLS and TIMSS). Looking at 42 European education systems, the report identifies which policies and structures are associated with higher levels of equity in student performance.

The new publication "Implementing Joint Degrees in the Erasmus Mundus action of the Erasmus+ programme” has been published. Check it out and discover the state of play and the lessons learned from the implementation of the Erasmus Mundus Joint Master Degrees in the Erasmus+ countries. Kudos to all the #EurydiceEU national units for contributing massively to this study.

Have parents achieved a better work-life balance through the pandemic? Is the time spent on childcare equally distributed between mothers and fathers? Do women have to put their careers on hold to home-school? What can governments and employers do to narrow the unpaid labour gap between mothers and fathers? Eurydice tackles all these open questions in its latest Focus On Article.

The current health crisis has posed unprecedented challenges to education. Teachers in Europe played an essential role in organising and ensuring home schooling and the safe return to schools, despite often lacking support and resources. The crisis has been a reminder of how valuable, but also demanding, the teaching profession is. Teachers’ skills and dedication are also indispensable in normal times if children are to achieve their full potential. But, is their pay competitive enough to attract and retain the best-qualified graduates, and maintain their commitment to quality teaching?

The first Eurydice live panel with Luce Pepin author of the book “The History of European cooperation in education and training: Europe in the making - an example” was a success. We discussed about cooperation between States on Education, the key role played by our network and the strategic importance of the European Education Area to be achieved by 2025. It was a great way to celebrate the 40 years of Eurydice! Did you miss it? Don’t worry, it’s never too late, you can watch it again.

Youth work, defined as a community support activity targeting older children and adolescents, has been hugely challenged during this pandemic time and this sector had to accelerate the process of moving online, using diverse digital tools, contents and activities. Look out for upcoming Youth Wiki panel discussion with analysts, national correspondents and NGOs on this topic. Follow it on November 24 at 11 AM and get into the debate on the Eurydice Facebook page.

What are the challenges and opportunities for digital education in the world of the 21st century? Digitalisation brings with it many new opportunities, but it also presents significant societal challenges. This is our last Eurydice live panel, which will be hold on December 8 at 11 AM on the Eurydice Facebook page. We will discuss about it with analysts, national units and active NGOs in the field. Stay tuned and ask us your questions during the live conversation.

How did the European Higher Education Area (EHEA) progress over the last two decades? And what is next? The new edition of the Bologna Process Implementation Report sheds light on the achievements realised during this time: the harmonisation of degree structures, the establishment of trustworthy quality assurance systems, and creation of an environment that supports internationalisation. Countries have continued to join the EHEA and student numbers have grown significantly, reaching today more than 38 million. However, there is still work to be done as the EHEA is far from being sufficiently socially inclusive and the participation rates of under-represented groups has not improved significantly.

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What are the different models of organisation in primary and secondary education and how long does each level last? How diverse are the programmes offered at tertiary level? The answers to these questions can be found in Eurydice's latest publication on The Structure of the European Education Systems. This Eurydice publication makes a visual comparison on how countries across Europe structure their educational systems. This report contains illustrative comparisons on three main organisational models of primary and lower secondary education in Europe. In parallel, it offers a schematic overview on national diagrams and interpretation guidelines for the data. The information covers the 43 European educational systems of the 38 countries participating in the Erasmus+ programme.

The academic calendar shows national data on how the academic year is structured (beginning of the academic year, term times, holidays and examination periods). Differences between university and non-university study programmes are also highlighted. The information is available for 37 countries.

How is the school year organised across Europe? Despite some differences, countries show many similarities regarding the structure of their school calendars. In 13 countries/regions, school generally starts in August. The countries where the school year begins the earliest are Denmark and Finland. With regard to the number of school days, it varies between 165 days in Albania and 200 days in Denmark and Italy. In general, the number of school days is the same in primary and secondary education with a few exceptions. This report, based on national data, gives an overview on the length of the school year, the start and the end dates, the timing and length of school holidays and the number of school days. It covers both primary and general secondary education and key points are illustrated by comparative figures. The information is available for 38 countries participating in the EU's Erasmus+ programme.