Expanding and steering capacity in Finnish higher education

The Council of the European Union (EU) adopted a proposal for a Council Recommendation on a European Approach to Micro-credentials for Lifelong Learning and Employability in June 2022 (Council of the European Union, 2022 [1]). It recommends a list of measures that EU Member States could consider implementing to support the development of a micro-credential ecosystem and deliver on their potential to support lifelong learning and employability. EU Member States are invited to implement the Council Recommendation and inform the Commission of planned national measures by December 2023. Governments in other regions, particularly Asia-Pacific and North America, are taking similar steps to develop a policy infrastructure for micro-credentials.The OECD launched a Micro-credential Implementation Project in August 2022 to assist countries in their efforts to develop national measures. With financial support from the EU, it aims to i) strengthen the evidence base on the current and near-term potential of micro-credentials and related challenges and ii) outline practical approaches and steps that countries can take to deliver on that potential and address challenges. This paper is the first of two planned project publications, aiming to strengthen the evidence base on the potential of micro-credentials. Taking into account the evidence already developed by different bodies with respect to micro-credential innovation (including OECD's recent papers "Micro-credential Innovations in Higher Education (OECD, 2021[2])" and "Quality and Value of Micro-credentials in Higher Education (OECD, 2021[3])"), it principally focuses on the areas where evidence is still limited, namely whether micro-credentials can contribute to: a) enhancing employability, labour market participation and outcomes among completers; b) widening pathways from upper secondary, including vocational education and training (VET), to higher education and improving completion of higher education; and c) promoting social inclusion among disadvantaged learners and workers. This paper will be followed by a second paper that outlines practical approaches and steps that countries can take to deliver on the potential of micro-credentials. The second paper is envisioned to be published towards the end of 2023 and will include a set of implementation and monitoring indicators that countries can use to facilitate national discussions and case studies from the four EU Member States that participate in the project, namely Finland, the Slovak Republic, Slovenia and Spain.

Section: Disadvantaged Learners and Workers Are Often Not Engaged In ...mentioning

confidence: 70%

Micro-credentials for lifelong learning and employability

2023

“…• In contrast to virtually all other OECD member countries, Finland has seen its tertiary education attainment rates stagnate for the last two decades. Tertiary attainment among 25-34-year-olds increased from 39% in 2000 (when Finland had the fifth-highest attainment levels in the OECD) to 40% in 2021, while the OECD average increased by 21 points from 28% to 48% in the same period (OECD, 2022 [3]). Among European OECD member countries, only the Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary and Italy had lower rates of tertiary attainment in this age group in 2021.…”

Section: About This Thematic Policy Briefmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…• In the period since the 2008 financial crisis, funding for Finland's overwhelmingly publicly financed system of higher education has fallen in real terms, in total and per student. Between 2012 and 2019the period for which international data are availableinflation-adjusted spending per full-time-equivalent student declined by almost 14%, compared to an average real-terms increase of 13% in OECD countries (OECD, 2022, p. 252 [3]).…”

Section: About This Thematic Policy Briefmentioning

confidence: 99%

The future of Finland’s funding model for higher education institutions

2023

“…This work has been overseen by the Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities and the Employment Service of Slovenia (Zavod Republike Slovenije za zaposlovanje, ZRSZ) and builds upon the initial work that involved industry representatives, such as the GZS and regional chambers. This project is still under development, but the objective is to create an integrated system and an online interface where forecasts for future labour-market skills demands will be accessible to higher education institutions, as well as learners (OECD, 2022 [69]).…”

Section: Recent and Ongoing Policies Complement Micro-credential Deve...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Furthermore, Slovenian higher education institutions have already started to strengthen their existing career and student guidance structures which could be a cornerstone of a more user-friendly learner information system (OECD, 2022 [69]). These efforts centre on the development of lifelong learning centres at the higher education institutions participating in the pilot programmes (MVZI, 2023 [66]).…”

Section: Pre-existing Competencies In Slovenian Higher Educationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Micro-credential policy implementation in Finland, the Slovak Republic, Slovenia and Spain

2023

This OECD Education Policy Perspective serves as Part B in a two-part series of summary papers published as part of the Micro-credentials Implementation Project, which ran from August 2022 to December 2023. The first publication, Paper A, examined the evolving landscape of micro-credentials, with a particular focus on the development of public policies that can foster effective utilisation of microcredentials for lifelong learning, upskilling, and reskilling (OECD, 2023[1]). This publication, Paper B, presents case studies from the four European Union Member States that participated in the project -Finland, the Slovak Republic, Slovenia and Spain.Each case study commences with a short overview of the respective national contexts in relation to the development of micro-credentials, followed by a discussion of assets and challenges in that national context, as identified through desk research, stakeholder interviews and workshops. The case studies conclude by outlining policy options that may serve to enhance the efficacy of micro-credential learning within these countries.Overall, the two-part series of summary papers are aimed to serve as a guide for policy makers and stakeholders in the education and training sectors, offering a strategic framework for the integration and effective utilisation of micro-credentials. 1 Micro-credentials Implementation Project 6  No. 86 -Micro-credential policy implementation in Finland, the Slovak Republic, Slovenia and Spain OECD EDUCATION POLICY PERSPECTIVES © OECD 2023 Activities and methodologies Preparatory phase: Strengthening the evidence base on the current and near-term potential of micro-credentials and related challenges (from August to December 2022)The main question underpinning the first activity in the project was what policy implementation measures countries might aim to develop given the current trajectory of micro-credentials. Taking into account the evidence already developed by different bodies with respect to micro-credential innovation, including the OECD's own previous work on micro-credentials (Kato, Galán-Muros and Weko, 2020[3]; OECD, 2021[4]; OECD, 2021 [5]), the project team principally focused on the areas where evidence on the potential of microcredentials was limited. Specifically, this meant examining how micro-credentials can contribute to: a) enhancing employability, labour-market participation and outcomes among completers; b) widening pathways from upper secondary education (including vocational education and training (VET) to higher education and improving completion of higher education; and c) promoting social inclusion among disadvantaged learners and workers.This activity involved desk-based research, interviews with leading international practitioners in the design and use of micro-credentials, and analysis of data supplied by micro-credential providers and data aggregators. A concise guidance paper summarised key findings from this activity was published under the title "Micro-credentials for Lifelong Learning and Employability: Uses and ...