When comparing lifelong learning systems in Europe, Swedish vocational education has been characterised as a statist, school-based ideal type, with strong emphasis on egalitarianism and social citizenship. However, the popularisation and expansion of higher vocational education (HVE), a post-secondary training form that has a mandate to train…

In this article we examine the European Semester as an innovative form of policy coordination, with distinct effects on education and skills policies for Member States. We analyse the Semester's framing of education policy, and examine its manifestations in Spain and Sweden, two countries considered to be different in their approach to education.…

Purpose: This study aims to explore a specific case of the alleged mismatch between higher education and employability by investigating long-term work life outcomes for graduates from a small university college in Sweden, and the associations between these outcomes and the graduates' social background, academic achievements and study approach in…

European Union policies emphasise the importance of entrepreneurship and self-employment to maintain economic growth, a solution influenced by the USA and research from schools of business. There are expectations of higher education graduates that they are innovative, will start businesses and will employ others. However, transferring a solution…

Governments recognise that careers guidance, underpinned by accurate labour market information, can help learners make post-secondary education choices that match their interests, aptitudes and abilities, and lead to rewarding employment. For this reason, they have invested in building linked education/employment information systems and other…

A decade ago, the world was not prepared for the widespread impact of the global financial recession. Gradually, the operating focus of higher education sector in many high-income countries around shifted, causing budget-cuts to become a recurring and dominant theme. Yet, at the same time, the expanding middle-class in emerging countries were keen…

Comparative studies of vocational education and training systems rarely conduct systematic comparisons of the content of educational programmes, partly because of methodological difficulties. Yet, comparing the organisation of curricula can increase our understanding of how programme design reflects orientation towards various life chances in…

This research paper is one in a series produced as part of the Cedefop project The changing nature and role of VET (2016-18). The aim of the paper is to provide an overview of how CVET is conceptualised in various international level policy documents and how it is referred to across countries. It discusses national conceptions of CVET, the…

The present publication is one of the outcomes of the OBSERVAL-NET project (follow-up of the OBSERVAL project). The main aim of OBSERVAL-NET was to set up a stakeholder-centric network of organisations supporting the validation of non-formal and informal learning in Europe based on the formation of national working groups in the 8 participating…

This is a Swedish study about the correspondence between higher education studies and the obtained profession considering both skill level and specialisation. The labour market position in 2002, for a student population, aged 26-28 years, was analyzed. Also those students who had not obtained a degree, but who had studied at least two years were…

As an employer, the public sector might be expected to be more meritocratic than the private sector, because of its democratic values and more transparent appointments procedures. In this context meritocratic means that the employer only considers characteristics such as degree and grades, relevant for the position in question. The individuals in…

This paper reports on the second phase of a multi-country study examining cross cultural perspectives of gender and management in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). It examines the broader labour market context and legislative frameworks for higher education in each country and then analyses the literature on women in university management. The…

In this study, different institutions of higher education and their effects on employment opportunities for professionals in Sweden are compared and analyzed. The availability of extensive, longitudinal register data made it possible to determine a match between degree and occupation for higher education graduates aged twenty-six to twenty-eight…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to analyse the effectiveness of entrepreneurship training programmes targeting post-graduate students. Design/methodology/approach: The approach takes the form of a case study of an entrepreneurship training programme, to assess its effectiveness. For this purpose the paper concentrates on the number of firms…

In a period of student loan scandals and U.S. financial market instability impacting on the cost and availability of student loans, this paper looks at alternative models of higher education funding. In this context, it also considers the level of financial support that the government should provide to higher education.